Syracuse (0-1, 0-1 Atlantic Coast) lost 48-34 to Virginia (1-0, 1-0) in its worst offensive performance in the Jim Boeheim era. The Orange started slow in the first half, but timely offense allowed them to pull the game close at halftime of the low-scoring matchup. In the second half, Syracuse’s offense fell silent again. And the Orange never recovered.

Here are some superlatives from the game.

Stud: Elijah Hughes

In a game with limited offense, Hughes still managed a solid performance. He scored 14 points and was the Orange’s only consistent force on the offensive end. He drew fouls, hit 3-pointers and opened up lanes for his teammates by breaking down defenses on the perimeter.

Hughes had a poor shooting performance, but was the only Syracuse player who consistently found his own shot. If someone has to emerge as the best SU player Wednesday, it’s Hughes.

Dud: Bourama Sidibe

Sidibe, as expected from Jim Boeheim’s previous lineups, comments and rotations, earned the start Wednesday night. In a game that packed a lot of size in the interior, Sidibe was no outlier: he disturbed layups early in the half on high-low drives from the free throw line and scored Syracuse’s first points of its young season.

But two fouls in under a minute sent Sidibe to the bench and he didn’t return for the remainder of the half. On his second foul, Sidibe jumped up but shot his arms forward.

“Hands up,” Boeheim yelled from the sideline, repeating until he drew Sidibe’s eyes.

After Syracuse’s exhibition game against Carleton, Boeheim noted Sidibe has worn an Orange uniform for three seasons, but much of his time has been spent watching from the sidelines. Sidibe doubled down on that inexperience with poor interior defense, undisciplined fouls and little energy on cuts running the pick and roll.

Biggest surprise: Joe Girard III, point guard

Through Brycen Goodine handled the ball for the majority of the preseason after Jalen Carey exited the game, Girard III was SU’s de facto No. 2 point guard. In the first half, Girard III — a high-school star who relied on a knockdown 3-point jumper en route to 50-plus point performances — made an immediate impact on dribble drives to the rim.

To break a long SU scoring slump, Girard III used two dribbles to penetrate and dropped off a pass to Marek Dolezaj. Dolezaj turned and hit a floater over the Cavaliers defense. He worked the ball inside several times thereafter, sparking a run of inside-outside creation the Orange had not yet seen.

On one play he faded off the ball, caught a pass at the top of the key and fired a shot that bounced off the back of the rim. But the momentum — which seemed to be in Girard III’s favor — carried the ball back into the rim. The Carrier Dome crowd, sensing life from the SU offense, exploded in cheers.

The big moment: Kody Stattmann’s 3-pointer

Despite trailing for most of the game, the Orange — behind a 3-point heavy attack — always seemed in reach of the Cavaliers. On a possession with under nine minutes to play in the game, Virginia worked the ball around the exterior of the 3-point line and found Kody Stattmann open on the left wing.

The sophomore guard, who was quiet for a large part of the game, rose up and drained a 3-pointer to sink the Orange deficit even further to 15 points, 42-27 the score. The Orange seemed lifeless afterward: they turned the ball over, missed open threes and shots under the basket. Three minutes of game time later, Syracuse remained down by 16. Fans headed for the exits.

Published on November 6, 2019 at 11:01 pm

Contact Michael: mmcclear@syr.edu | @MikeJMcCleary