Next one counts
The Syracuse Orange closed their exhibition slate with a 96-51 win over Slippery Rock University. As we prepare for the opening game against the Le Moyne Dolphins on Monday night, what can we take from the two exhibition games?
Defense and Rebounding are Concerns
The Orange played a lot of different line-ups over the two games and the broadcast last night said Adrian Autry had reasons for doing so. The staff wanted to look at the analytics of the different groups and while that can be useful to help determine match-ups based on the opponent, it does impact the communication required on the defensive end.
This is a deeper, more athletic team than last season, but if they want to make it back to the NCAA Tournament, they will need to commit to the defensive end. Last year the Orange were 10-2 when they out-rebounded opponents, so they have to be willing to expand effort on the glass. With a deeper bench, Autry has more options to keep players fresh throughout the season.
Shooting might be alright
We’ve seen lots of comments about the three-point shooting for this group and two games don’t prove anything but here’s some numbers from beyond the arc:
Chris Bell 9-16
JJ Starling: 5-10
Jaquan Carlos: 1-3
Donnie Freeman: 1-4
Eddie Lampkin: 1-2
Elijah Moore: 6-14
J’yare Davis: 2-6
Lucas Taylor: 1-5
Kyle Cuffe: 1-3
Petar Majstorovic: 0-2
The Orange made 27 3’s in the two games and last season Syracuse was 6-0 when they made 10 or more 3’s in a game, with their season-high being 12 against Cornell. Are the Orange loaded with shooters? No, but it does appear that they have a number of options this year to make open looks.
Ball is moving
Syracuse had 27 assists against Clarion and 22 assists vs The Rock last night. Last season’s team averaged 13.8 assists per game with a high of 23 (against Chaminade). The Orange look to be more balanced this year on offense, but the exhibition games have shown the willingness of players to make the extra pass and keep the defense moving.
Sam did a great breakdown of how Syracuse can use Eddie Lampkin as a facilitator which can help with the spacing and ball movement. We’ll see how they handle the pressure when the competition picks up, but it’s a positive sign to see buy-in from the players in terms of what the coaches want on offense.
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What were your takeaways?