Syracuse Basketball: Strong defense and free throw shooting not enough in loss to Wake Forest
Despite another well-rounded game from the Syracuse Basketball squad, Wake Forest handed the Orange their third loss of the year. ITLH breaks it down.
First half:
Despite scoring 32 first-half points for the second straight game, Syracuse almost let Wake Forest run away with this one.
Halfway through the first half, the Orange were shooting a weak 3-10 from the floor, while the Demon Deacons were shooting an impressive 10-18, and were embarrassing Syracuse’ 2-3 zone through the first 10 minutes.
Syracuse uses the free throw line to their advantage
However, Syracuse would go on to use the free throw line to their advantage and develop confidence that would end up helping them on the defensive end. Tyus Battle and Paschal Chukwu shot a combined 6-7 from the free throw line, and the Orange’s offense took off from there.
By the end of the first frame, the Orange were shooting a respectable 45.8% (11-24) from the floor, all while limiting the Demon Deacons to 12-26 shooting after starting off 10-18.
Syracuse point guard Frank Howard went off in the first half, scoring 11 points on a ridiculous 3-4 shooting from three-point range
Syracuse’ defense swings the momentum of the game
SU’s lengthy guards in Battle and Howard combined for four of the Orange’s five first-half steals. Despite being outplayed early, the Orange were able to continue outrebounding their opponents in the first-half. Matthew Moyer grabbed four of Syracuse’ 15 first-half rebounds.
With 2:08 remaining in the first-half, Howard found Chukwu for a dunk that gave Syracuse their first lead since since 18:52 of the first half.
With 27 seconds remaining in the first half, Wake Forest ended Syracuse’ 12-0 run on a Mitchell Wilbekin four-point play. The and-1 three-pointer tied things up at 29.
On the ensuing possession, Howard hit a three of his own in the dying seconds of the first half, and the Orange entered the break with a 32-29 lead.
After a sluggish start, the Orange closed out the first half on a 17-7 run and had all of the momentum in the world heading into the break.
Second half:
After sustaining a knee injury halfway through the first half, it was announced that Wake Forest’s leading scorer, Keyshawn Woods, would not return to the game.
With 15:00 remaining in the game, Chukwu was fouled, hit both shots from the line, and remained a perfect 4-4 from the line. After Chukwu gave Syracuse a 36-34 lead, Howard found Moyer on the next possession for a dunk and gave the Orange a 38-34 lead.
Battle faces foul trouble
After Battle committed his fourth foul of the game with 12:50 remaining, Syracuse point guard Howard Washington, who played just one minute against Virginia Tech, was put into the game.
Due to Battle’s foul trouble, his streak of eight straight games playing all 40 minutes a game ended. At this point, both team’s were without their leading scorer’s, and it was up to the role players to step up.
With 12 minutes remaining, both teams were shooting 22% or worse from the field in the second half and needed a spark.
After a pair of Brissett free throws with 12 minutes left in the game, Syracuse forced Wake Forest to turnover the ball. On the ensuing possession, Howard drew a foul, hit both free throws, and extended the Orange lead back to four.
After a Wake Forest basket, Brissett drew another foul on the ensuing possession, and unsurprisingly, hit both free throws.
With 9:27 remaining, Wilbekin hit a three that put Wake Forest up 46-44. From the 12:55 mark to the 8:51 mark, Syracuse was held without a field goal in Battle’s absence. Syracuse then called a timeout, brought back Battle into the game, and things went well from there.
Battle comes back, Syracuse heats up
With more attention back on Battle, Brissett was able to find Howard for a wide open three that gave Syracuse a 47-46 lead. On the ensuing Demon Deacons possession, Oshae Brissett stole the ball under the basket and Syracuse scored an easy two on the fast break.
After a 7-0 run by Syracuse, Wake Forest’s Bryant Crawford hit back-to-back three-pointers from the corner and cut the Syracuse lead to 53-52 with 5:14 remaining.
With 5:14, after two free throw misses from Brissett, Wake Forest freshman Chaundee Brown gave the Demon Deacons a 57-56 lead on a three-pointer from the corner.
On the ensuing possession, Battle hit a three of his own and gave Syracuse a 56-55 lead. With 3:25 remaining, Brissett hit a three from the top of the key and tied things up at 59.
Down two with 2:27 left, Howard was sent to the free throw line, converted both shots, and knotted things up at 61.
After four unanswered Wake Forest points, Battle drew a foul but failed to convert the front end of the one-and-one from the free-throw line.
On their next possession, Brissett grabbed an offensive rebound, scored an and-one, and cut the deficit to 66-64.
With 17 seconds left, down 69-64, Howard hit a deep three and cut the Wake Forest lead to two. Over his last five games, Howard has been shooting a ridiculous 16-28 from three-point land.
Wake Forest would go on to convert from the free throw line, and hand the Orange their third loss of the season, and first in ACC play.
By the numbers
For Syracuse:
Howard scored 23 points and dished out five assists on 7-14 shooting and 5-7 from three-point land. Brissett scored 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds. As a team, Syracuse shot a strong 18-23 (78.3%) from the free throw line. Defensively, Chukwu contributed four of Syracuse’ six blocks.
For Wake Forest:
While Thompson, Wilbekin, and Crawford all scored in double digits for the Demon Deacons. As a team, Wake Forest outrebounded Syracuse 38-29.
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What’s next?
The 12-3 Orange will look to get back in the win column on Saturday against Notre Dame in the Carrier Dome.