Five Takeaways from Syracuse's Win Over Rider
1. Richmond Continues to do Everything
Kadary Richmond was spectacular in his first start against Niagara. He did not have the same type of performance against Rider, but still had a significant impact on the game by doing a little bit of everything. Richmond scored just seven points, but also had seven rebounds, six assists, three steals and a block. Richmond looks to set up his teammates for good looks, can get into the lane, and is really good already at the top of the zone. If Syracuse is going to pull the upset at Rutgers, they will need Richmond to have a similar performance on both ends.
2. Newton is a Better Shooter Than I Thought
The last two wins for Syracuse have come in blowout fashion. They have allowed Woody Newton to see extended minutes, and he has taken full advantage. Newton has scored nine points in each of the last two games, and made four of his six three point attempts overall. That includes a three for four performance against Rider. Coming to Syracuse, Newton was known as more of a combo forward who could slash and make plays in the lane. However, in his first two games at Syracuse, he has shown he can really shoot it as well. He also led Syracuse in rebounding against Rider, and had two steals and two blocks against Niagara. Newton is making a case for Boeheim to play him for the rest of the season, and may have passed Braswell in the rotation.
3. Griffin/Girard Finally Break Out
Do not mistake the title here, Griffin has not been bad in the first two games. He has scored in double figures each game, had 12 rebounds in the opener and has shown he is a more than capable passer (averaging four assists per game). But Saturday's win over Rider was a bit of a breakout performance for him, at least as far as shooting the ball. Griffin was 8-11 shooting the ball overall including 4-6 from beyond the arc. In the first two games, he was shooting just 29.6% from the floor and 33% from deep. It was good to see him have an efficient shooting night. Joe Girard has shot the ball really poorly in the first two games and has turned it over quite a bit. Boeheim called his season opener a "nightmare" and he was right. He wasn't much better in game two. Against Rider, he was 6-12 from three and had five assists. Girard still turned it over five times, and needs to clean that up, but a strong shooting performance was needed.
4. The Defense Has Gotten Better With Practice
In the season opener against Bryant, especially in the first half, the Syracuse zone really struggled. Bryant got open looks whenever they wanted and torched the Orange from the outside. That includes scoring 51 points in the first half. Since that point, the defense has been much better. Bryant shot just 34% in the second half including 23.5% from beyond the arc. Niagara and Rider have combined to score just 48.5 points per game while shooting 28.5% from the floor and 20.6% from three point range. Syracuse is also forcing nearly 18 turnovers per game. There's no question it was a bad first half against Bryant, but the zone has been much better since.
5. Syracuse Needs to Take Better Care of the Ball
Syracuse is turning it over at an alarming clip. They are averaging 15.7 turnovers per game. For comparison's sake, Syracuse turned it over just 11.3 times per game last season. In fact, you have to go back to the 2009-10 season to find a team that turned it over, on average, more than 13 times. That squad turned it over 15.1 times per game. The good news is that 2009-10 team was pretty darn good, and may have won a National Championship if not for an Arinze Onuaku injury. That said, if Syracuse is going to beat good teams, they have to take better care of the basketball. It allows the offense to be more efficient and prevents transition opportunities for opponents. Rutgers, for example, is forcing over 15 turnovers per game so far.
