How Did Syracuse Basketball Beat Duke?

It came right down to the end, but Syracuse Basketball beat Duke by doing all the things they’ve been trying not to do this season.

As every Syracuse basketball fan is aware, the Orange beat the Duke Blue Devils 64-62 Monday night. That’s awesome and a complete surprise to those who have watched Syracuse basketball falter most of the season. Even when victorious, Syracuse basketball has looked lost and flat for long stretches this season. Against Duke, they were a different team. Not just visibly, but on paper as well. The data tells us that Syracuse Basketball won the game by doing the things it hasn’t done all season.

Before the game, my colleague David Stone outlined the four keys to the game for Syracuse. To touch on those briefly, they were:

1. Limit how many open three’s Duke takes.
2. Win on the glass.
3. More than one offensive player stepping up.
4. Limit the turnovers.

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Coincidentally, those four things have eluded the Orange most of the season. If you look back at any of the game reviews and behind-the-numbers article we’ve written this season, you’ll see each one of those highlighted as common deficiencies.

In this game, however, Syracuse basketball did those things and came away with a hard-fought, but well worth-it victory. Take a look at the specifics:

1. Duke shot 27% (10-37) from three on the night. They shot north of 38% on the season. When watching the game, it was easy to tell why. The Orange was rotating quicker and more under control than we have come to expect. There was almost always a hand in the shooter’s face. Key #1 = completed.
2. The Orange won the rebounding battle 49-42, including 26-18 in offensive boards. Key #2 = completed.
3. This takes the cake for most interesting stat of the night. Syracuse only had five players score in the game, with the high being 14. The high scorer was Michael Gbinije. Oh, and Tyler Roberson. And Trevor Cooney. Oh yeah, and Malachi Richardson. The Orange had a four-way tie in scoring, with those four all scoring 14. The only other scorer was Tyler Lydon at 8 points. Key #3 = completed.
4. Syracuse basketball had averaged over 11 turnover per game on the season going into the game. They commit only eight of them in this game, while Duke committed nine. Key #4 = completed.

As much as I want to commend David for channeling his inner premonition, this was actually a perfect storm of a team doing what they don’t usually do to beat a team that is generally better than them. It helped that the team played visibly better defense throughout the entire game than they have in any one contest until this point. It also helped that the players moved the ball better and didn’t settle for contested 3-pointers with over 20 seconds left on the shot clock. And Tyler Roberson was there having arguably the best game in his college career with 14 points on 50% shooting and 20 total rebounds, 12 of which were offensive.

Related Story: Coach K is gonna huff and puff and blow your house down.

With a tilt at #13 Virginia coming this Saturday, the Syracuse basketball team has the chance to practice what works. I know I’m crossing my fingers, as all fans should be. It’s a chance to right the ship and make some noise. If Syracuse can muster back-to-back wins against top 20 ACC foes, increase the confidence, mix in a little effort, and kill the generally awful defeatist attitude it shows from time-to-time, Syracuse could build some momentum and make a lot of noise the rest of the way.