Is there anything to build on here?
At long last, the Syracuse Orange won a game against a high-major opponent. SU defeated Georgia Tech 62-55, holding the Yellow Jackets to the lowest output that the Orange have allowed all season. It was also Syracuse’s second-lowest scoring game of the year, despite being played at 72 possessions, but neither team scored easily.
Here are a few takeaways
First, a metrics update
Syracuse remained 125th in KenPom after the win. The Orange were projected to win the game 79-78 on KenPom, and won by seven points instead. However, it was not enough to move the needle. Since SU played its best defensive game of the season, it moved from 190th in defense (106.9) all the way to 152nd (105.0), but dropped from 106th (110.1) in offense, to 130th (108.6).
SU moved from 163 in the NET to 161, meaning that opponents hosting the Orange still see that game count for Quadrant 4, but only by one spot. Since SU does not have a road win, and the difference between a Q3 and Q4 win for the teams that Syracuse has visited is not very important, that distinction hasn’t really made an impact yet.
Georgia Tech’s awful offensive first half
Before the Yellow Jackets got on the board with a Lance Terry layup, they missed their first six shots. Ryan Mutombo hit the front of the rim on a hook shot in the lane on the first possession, shying away from contact after Naithan George scored a paint touch for the team.
George launched a wide open deep three and missed on the second possession. Next, Syracuse played a nice defensive possession, keeping GT out of the paint, but the Yellow Jackets didn’t even try to initiate offense until the shot clock was already halfway done, and didn’t venture a look at the rim when it ran out, turning it over and back to the Orange.
A few more shots that didn’t come close to dropping, even though they weren’t especially tightly guarded, dug Georgia Tech into a deeper hole. Even when GT put Javian McCollum, usually a source of instant offense, into the game, he struggled, going one of six from the field.
SU held the Jackets to .649 points per possession in the first half, and didn’t allow a single second chance point despite seven offensive rebounds. Georgia Tech shot 29.7% from the field, and the Orange coaxed George (sub-30% three-point shooter and one of the top assist men in the ACC) into attempting six threes in the first 20. He hadn’t attempted six threes in a game in a month.
Syracuse’s defense definitely deserves credit for holding Georgia Tech to 24 first half points, but the Yellow Jackets just looked completely out of rhythm themselves.
Lucas Taylor is getting comfortable
It’s now three games in a row with double-digit scoring for Lucas Taylor, and five games in a row with multiple made three pointers.
Taylor scored 10 points on four for seven shooting, and grabbed five rebounds in 30 minutes for the Orange. 8 of his 10 points came in the first half, when Syracuse was really struggling offensively, helping to buoy the team.
SU brought Taylor in from the portal to fill a role, playing defense and hitting shots. He has been one of the better defenders on the team, but until recently, was struggling to be playable on offense. With the shot finally starting to come along, he’s become a key piece of the rotation, perhaps bigger than anybody anticipated over the last few games.
Jaquan Carlos off the bench
For the first time this season, Adrian Autry didn’t list Jaquan Carlos in his starting lineup. In fact, it was the first time since opening night of Carlos’ sophomore season – an 83-77 win for Hofstra over Princeton on Nov. 7, 2022 – that he didn’t get the start.
It signals that Syracuse trusts JJ Starling to be the primary ball handler on the floor, as over the last month when Starling didn’t play, Autry barely took Carlos off the floor, citing the lack of any other ball handling.
Carlos played ten minutes, the fewest he’s played since his freshman season, and didn’t score.
JJ Starling closed it out
Boy, isn’t it great to have JJ Starling back. In his second game back from injury, he played 37 minutes and scored 21 points on 9-16 shooting, leading the team.
When Georgia Tech took a 38-35 lead with 11 minutes left, it was Starling that the Orange looked to on the very next possession, tying the game with a three-pointer.
Then, he gave Syracuse the lead for good, a jumper to make it 42-40 with under ten minutes to play.
11 of his 13 second half points came after GT took that 38-35 lead, including two massive free throws to push the lead to two possessions with 27 seconds to play.
Syracuse relied on Starling late in the game to operate the offense, and he delivered, getting the Orange to the finish line.
Other Notes
It was mentioned on the broadcast that Chris Bell’s move to the bench triggered a switch in his mentality. The broadcast noted that previously, Bell was worried about “when am I going to come out of the game,” but now, he’s thinking about “when am I going to go in to the game.” Bell scored 13 points, but on 13 shots on Tuesday.
Despite not having Donnie Freeman, Syracuse still pulled in 13 offensive rebounds and won the battle on the glass 48-39.