SYRACUSE - When Syracuse hits the Carrier Dome floor Saturday night against Baylor, head coach Jim Boeheim will probably be wondering what to expect from his 23rd-ranked Orange.
A performance like the last 20 minutes of their victory a week ago over Colgate? Or another effort like the ones in close losses to Wichita State and Oklahoma State, when two stirring rallies couldn't compensate for too much lackluster play?
“I'm very disappointed in our level of play,” Boeheim said. “We're just not cohesive on the offensive end. We can't seem to get into a rhythm. You can't make the kind of turnovers we did against top-20 teams, or you are going to be on the end of a beating, not just a loss, a beating.”
And that's not all.
“I'm disappointed in our inside rebounding,” Boeheim said. “Our big guys have got to do a better job inside. I guess talking ain't working. It's disappointing. I think we can get better.”
Syracuse (8-2) has been outrebounded in four of its last six games, by an eye-opening 22 on the road by a fired-up Canisius squad and 10 by Oklahoma State, and has a rebounding margin of just plus-.4. The Orange held a 47-34 edge over Wichita State but outrebounded Colgate last Saturday by only one and were decisively beaten 20-12 on the offensive glass by a team whose tallest starter was 6-foot-8.
“We think that just because sometimes we're bigger and taller than everybody, we're going to get the rebound,” said freshman Paul Harris, who is averaging 11.3 points and 7 rebounds per game. “It's not even that. You've got to box out, and sometimes in a game we just don't do it.”
Its pulsating 64-61 victory in the Carrier Dome has helped Wichita State (7-0) zoom to No. 8 in the AP Top 25, while the unbeaten Cowboys (11-0) have vaulted to No. 15 since their 72-68 win over Syracuse last week in the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden.
The Shockers used a 27-1 run in the first half to take a stunning 35-12 lead with 5:50 left in the period before Syracuse stormed back in the second half to tie it at 61-all. Only a slipup by Demetris Nichols - he muffed a fast-break layup that would have given the Orange the lead in the final minute - prevented a miraculous victory over a veteran team that made it to the round of 16 in the NCAA tournament in March.
“We played horrible, but we had chances to win,” said junior point guard Josh Wright, who is averaging nearly 10 points a game, has 52 assists and 32 turnovers, and has played solid defense. “That's a positive we might take from this game.”
Syracuse also erased all but one point of a 13-point deficit in the closing minutes against Oklahoma State before falling.
“We fought back,” said Nichols, who leads the Orange in scoring at 17.6 points per game and has scored 20 or more points in five of the last six games. “We showed courage, and that's going to help us in the long run.”
Syracuse, which overwhelmed Colgate in the second half behind 24 points in the period by Nichols, has been plagued by careless turnovers - the Orange had a season-high 23 against both Oklahoma State and UTEP and are averaging 16.2 per game. So, falling behind early by double digits has become a bad habit.
“I don't think our execution has been good all year on offense,” Boeheim said. “We keep making some bad turnovers. We're not getting good movement. If your offense isn't good, generally your defense is going to struggle as well. We are not coming out ready to play. We haven't all year.”
Notes: Despite a nose injury that forced him to miss two games, center Darryl Watkins is tied for 10th nationally in blocks with 3.4 per game (27 total). Connecticut leads the nation with 10.5 blocks per game (84 total), and Syracuse ranks second at 8.6 (86 total). ... Nichols is shooting an impressive 48.3 percent from long range (28-for-58 on 3-pointers). ... Baylor is 6-2 and coming off a 64-59 home loss to South Carolina.
“I'm very disappointed in our level of play,” Boeheim said. “We're just not cohesive on the offensive end. We can't seem to get into a rhythm. You can't make the kind of turnovers we did against top-20 teams, or you are going to be on the end of a beating, not just a loss, a beating.”
And that's not all.
“I'm disappointed in our inside rebounding,” Boeheim said. “Our big guys have got to do a better job inside. I guess talking ain't working. It's disappointing. I think we can get better.”
Syracuse (8-2) has been outrebounded in four of its last six games, by an eye-opening 22 on the road by a fired-up Canisius squad and 10 by Oklahoma State, and has a rebounding margin of just plus-.4. The Orange held a 47-34 edge over Wichita State but outrebounded Colgate last Saturday by only one and were decisively beaten 20-12 on the offensive glass by a team whose tallest starter was 6-foot-8.
“We think that just because sometimes we're bigger and taller than everybody, we're going to get the rebound,” said freshman Paul Harris, who is averaging 11.3 points and 7 rebounds per game. “It's not even that. You've got to box out, and sometimes in a game we just don't do it.”
Its pulsating 64-61 victory in the Carrier Dome has helped Wichita State (7-0) zoom to No. 8 in the AP Top 25, while the unbeaten Cowboys (11-0) have vaulted to No. 15 since their 72-68 win over Syracuse last week in the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden.
The Shockers used a 27-1 run in the first half to take a stunning 35-12 lead with 5:50 left in the period before Syracuse stormed back in the second half to tie it at 61-all. Only a slipup by Demetris Nichols - he muffed a fast-break layup that would have given the Orange the lead in the final minute - prevented a miraculous victory over a veteran team that made it to the round of 16 in the NCAA tournament in March.
“We played horrible, but we had chances to win,” said junior point guard Josh Wright, who is averaging nearly 10 points a game, has 52 assists and 32 turnovers, and has played solid defense. “That's a positive we might take from this game.”
Syracuse also erased all but one point of a 13-point deficit in the closing minutes against Oklahoma State before falling.
“We fought back,” said Nichols, who leads the Orange in scoring at 17.6 points per game and has scored 20 or more points in five of the last six games. “We showed courage, and that's going to help us in the long run.”
Syracuse, which overwhelmed Colgate in the second half behind 24 points in the period by Nichols, has been plagued by careless turnovers - the Orange had a season-high 23 against both Oklahoma State and UTEP and are averaging 16.2 per game. So, falling behind early by double digits has become a bad habit.
“I don't think our execution has been good all year on offense,” Boeheim said. “We keep making some bad turnovers. We're not getting good movement. If your offense isn't good, generally your defense is going to struggle as well. We are not coming out ready to play. We haven't all year.”
Notes: Despite a nose injury that forced him to miss two games, center Darryl Watkins is tied for 10th nationally in blocks with 3.4 per game (27 total). Connecticut leads the nation with 10.5 blocks per game (84 total), and Syracuse ranks second at 8.6 (86 total). ... Nichols is shooting an impressive 48.3 percent from long range (28-for-58 on 3-pointers). ... Baylor is 6-2 and coming off a 64-59 home loss to South Carolina.
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