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STORRS, Conn. — When Sophie Burrows arrived from Australia to Syracuse ahead of her freshman season, her calling card was her outside shooting.

In the preseason against The College of Saint Rose, that prowess was on full display. She knocked down 6-of-9 3s, earning a starting spot in Syracuse’s lineup to start the regular season with Georgia Woolley and Dominique Camp out with injuries.

Throughout her first Division I season, Burrows showed flashes, draining three triples against Northeastern, Boston College and Pitt. Though for the most part, she struggled, shooting an inefficient 23.2% from behind the arc.

But when Syracuse needed a spark facing a top program in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Burrows shined. In No. 6 seed Syracuse’s (24-7, 13-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) 72-64 loss to No. 3 seed UConn (30-5 18-0 Big East), Burrows had the best game of her season. The freshman’s career-high six 3-pointers (6-for-11) led to a career-best 18 points as she stepped into SU’s starting lineup for the first time since Nov. 15.

“This young lady has been shooting the ball so well in practice and in the game, she’s kind of got a little stage fright,” Syracuse head coach Felisha Legette-Jack said postgame. “But today, there was nobody else to help and she just channeled her nerves and became the player I know that she’s going to be in the future for us moving forward.”

Because Alaina Rice — who started all 31 of the Orange’s games before Monday — was ruled out for the contest with an injury she suffered versus Arizona, Legette-Jack needed to replace SU’s third-leading scorer in its starting lineup.

While she pondered the decision, Legette-Jack thought back to the days when she got to her office at the Carmelo K. Anthony Basketball Center at 7:30 a.m. — 30 minutes before Syracuse’s practice started. Consistently, Burrows was on the court when she got there, Legette-Jack said.

After UConn’s Paige Bueckers notched her first of a game-high 32 on a layup giving the Huskies a 7-6 lead three minutes into the game, Burrows’ work in the gym translated to the hardwood of Harry A. Gampel Pavilion.

As Dyaisha Fair made a move to shake Nika Mühl and get to the right elbow, UConn’s Ashlynn Shade rotated from the right corner to contest Fair. While she stopped the now third-highest scorer in D-I women’s history from getting a shot off, Shade left Burrows open in the corner.

With Burrows open, Fair sent a right-handed bounce pass to the freshman. Instantly, Burrows got her shot off, draining the 3 in Shade’s face.

“We went with her and we stayed with her because she earned every minute that she was out there,” Legette-Jack said.

On the ensuing possession, SU’s Woolley — who poured in 18 points — notched a steal and drained a mid-range shot giving the Orange an 11-7 lead.

But over the next four and a half minutes, Syracuse only scored two points, allowing the Huskies to tie the game 13-13. Off of an inbounds play, SU guard Kennedi Perkins lobbed the ball up to Izabel Varejão along the baseline.

On the play, Burrows was positioned in the right corner, which prompted Shade to again leave her assignment to pursue the ball. But just like the first time, Burrows was left open in the same spot. The same result ensued, this time off of Varejão’s feed.

In the first quarter, Woolley (eight) and Burrows (six) combined for 14 of the Orange’s 16 points, helping them only trail by two because of their efforts. Outside of the Australian duo, SU shot 1-for-11 from the field in the opening quarter.

“I’m so proud of her,” Woolley said. “She really stepped up today.”

Despite her hot start, Burrows was silenced to begin the second quarter. With SU trailing 24-16 after Shade — who led UConn making 5-of-her-9 3s — canned a triple, Burrows tried answering but missed.

Over the next three minutes, the Huskies grew their lead to double digits for the first time, but Burrows cut it to seven. After SU forced a turnover, Fair, who only scored two first-half points, got the Orange out in transition and bounced the ball behind her to Burrows on the left wing. She confidently nailed the 3-pointer at the 4:22 mark of the second quarter.

Over the final few minutes until halftime, UConn outscored Syracuse 9-5, taking a 39-28 lead into the break. While the Huskies retained an 11-point lead throughout the first four minutes of the second half, SU quickly fought back.

Fair canned her first of four 3s at the 6:10 mark of the third quarter, then Woolley drilled a jumper following a miss from Bueckers to cut the Orange’s deficit to 41-35. Trying to answer back, Bueckers again missed the mark.

Kyra Wood grabbed the rebound and quickly got the ball to Woolley, who pushed it up the left side of the court. Ahead of the ball, Wood sprinted toward the paint and attracted a double team, leaving Burrows open behind the arc on the left wing. Off Burrows’ catch-and-shoot make, Syracuse suddenly only trailed by three.

At the start of the fourth, the Orange’s offense came out swinging from behind the arc. While Fair was met by a triple team, SU ran a play for Woolley, who nailed her third 3-pointer making the score 55-47.

Following a layup from UConn’s Aaliyah Edwards, the Orange put the ball in Fair’s hands, and as she penetrated inside the lane, Shade left Burrows open in the right corner. Just as she did earlier, Burrows made Shade pay, sinking a wide-open triple.

“You’re so focused on containing Fair that sometimes other people get open and they stepped up to the plate and made big shots for their team so you got to give credit to them,” Bueckers said.

Bueckers answered with a 3, Fair answered right back, as Syracuse trailed 60-53 with 8:26 remaining. Over the next five minutes, UConn built its lead back up to 10, but Syracuse had one last push in it.

Fair and Burrows proceeded to make back-to-back 3s and then Alyssa Latham canned a jumper with 1:53 remaining, cutting SU’s deficit to 65-63. That was the closest the Orange came to taking the lead as they fell to the Huskies in their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance.

While it’s hard to look at the positives following a season-ending defeat, Burrows’ performance proves that her uncanny outside shooting prowess can and will make a difference for Syracuse going forward.

“She had to step up today for another player starting on the biggest stage,” Woolley said. “Like, we’re at UConn, playing UConn, and she hit six threes. Her future’s exciting and I’m just so proud of the way she played today.”

Published on March 25, 2024 at 11:55 pm

Contact Justin: justingirshon@gmail.com | @JustinGirshon