In stellar sign, Syracuse basketball offense on fire, team shining in 2nd half

Over its past two Atlantic Coast Conference clashes, both victories, the Syracuse basketball offense has exploded after a recent mini-slump.

Equally as encouraging, in the Orange’s last two contests, the team has performed quite well after half-time, which hasn’t always proven the case for the ‘Cuse throughout the 2021-22 campaign.

On Wednesday night at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, N.C., Syracuse basketball found itself down to a struggling N.C. State group, 45-42, after the first 20 minutes of play.

No worries. The Orange (11-11, 5-6) kicked things into another gear after the break, outscoring the Wolfpack (10-13, 3-9) by a count of 47-37 in the second half to emerge with an 89-82 triumph on the road.

That puts the ‘Cuse record back at .500, as the Orange gets set to host Louisville this coming Saturday afternoon. The Cardinals recently saw their head coach move on, and Louisville has lost four games in a row, so this is a great opportunity for the ‘Cuse to notch another conquest and keep its positive mojo going.

Syracuse basketball senior forward Cole Swider has gone full beast mode of late.

For a little context, against N.C. State, the Orange was plus-10 points in the second half and registered 89 total points. This past Saturday night on the Hill versus an excellent Wake Forest unit, Syracuse basketball had a massive 25-point advantage in the second half and put up more than 90 points in a 94-72 victory.

I thought that the ‘Cuse zone defense, which is clearly the team’s wild card in 2021-22, was pretty darn good when Syracuse basketball stunned the Demon Deacons.

The Orange, in its success against the Wolfpack, did allow a whopping 16 3-pointers to N.C. State, but I credit the ‘Cuse for continuing to hold its own in the rebounding arena.

Listen, as I’ve written about a lot of late, the Syracuse basketball zone is inconsistent, which means for the team to defeat its foes, by and large the Orange is going to have to outscore its opponents.

Producing 89 points, as it did versus the Wolfpack, should do the trick. I was a little bummed that the ‘Cuse bench didn’t do more against N.C. State, but the Orange’s five starters were simply fabulous.

The Syracuse basketball starters, per ESPN statistics, all collected at least 16 points. The ‘Cuse connected on 59.3 percent from the field, 57.9 percent from beyond the arc, and 77.8 percent from the charity stripe.

Most importantly, at least to me personally, is that over the last two ACC clashes, Syracuse basketball has hit on a highly efficient percentage from downtown, but the Orange is making a concerted effort to take – and make – a majority of its shots from inside the perimeter.

Swider and junior center Jesse Edwards led the way with 19 points each, but everyone in the starting rotation got involved in the offensive party. Swider is a critical piece of this roster, and when Swider plays well, the ‘Cuse is a completely different team. Naturally, I mean that in a good way.