Five Takeaways: Virginia 74 Syracuse 69
Here are five takeaways from Syracuse's 74-69 loss to Virginia.
1. Rebounding
One of the big positives from this game was rebounding. Syracuse really crashed the boards, especially in the second half. While Virginia is not a great rebounding team, it was the effort and energy attacking the boards that was the encouraging part. Syracuse outrebounded Virginia 37-33 and had 18 offensive boards. That led to three more field goal attempts and 13 more free throws than Virginia. Both good things. There were a few moments that were not positive on the boards, including when Virginia missed a transition layup and Cole Swider allowed a smaller player to get a rebound over him for a put back. But largely it was a strong effort on the glass.
2. Defense
There were times when the Syracuse defense was pretty good. Good rotations, closing out on shooters, contesting shots. Those possessions were too rare, however, especially in the second half. Virginia shot 63% in the second half. In the first, the Cavs were just 4-14 from beyond the arc but only took six three pointers in the second half. That was due to getting the ball inside for better looks and not settling for outside shots. Jayden Gardner had a field day inside as did Kadin Shedrick. This was a below average offensive team in Virginia, and Syracuse allowed them to score 74 points, 13 above its average. It was the second most points the Cavs scored all season. Syracuse is not winning games like that. The defense does not have to be great, it just has to be decent. It was not in this game.
3. Missed Shots & Free Throws
Despite Virginia's defense being one of the better ones Syracuse will face this season, the Orange largely got good shots. Sure there were some offensive possessions that were poor, but that will happen against a team like Virginia. Most of the game, however, Syracuse got looks that you'd take. The problem is there were too many missed open looks. Cole Swider was just 3-12 shooting, Jimmy Boeheim was 7-18 with too many missed shots in the lane, Joe Girard was 1-5. Jimmy was also just 2-8 from the free throw line, accounting for six of Syracuse's eight missed free throws. He is now shooting 56% from the free throw line after 71% last season. That has to improve. Cole has to make open looks for Syracuse to win. Scoring 69 points on Virginia is good. They give up only 57 per game. Despite that, there was a lot of meat left on the bone offensively. Shooting 37% is not going to cut it when your defense is not good.
4. The Bench
The bench was another positive in this game. Benny Williams gave Syracuse some strong minutes defensively and on the boards. He also made two free throws and had a three pointer that looked good all the way but just rimmed out. With the effort he has shown defensively and rebounding, I am very encouraged by Williams the last three games. Similarly, I liked what I saw from Symir Torrence against Virginia. He got into the lane a few times, showed toughness on the offensive boards and made a nice play on a transition layup. I do not understand why he did not get more minutes earlier in the second half. He played 10 minutes in total, but I thought he could have played a handful more. Especially with Girard struggling to score with some questionable decisions. Torrence coming out in the final few minutes was due to wanting another shooter on the floor with Syracuse trailing and not wanting Torrence to get to the free throw line. He is shooting just 36% from the line this season. But he certainly could have played more earlier. Girard has been good for most of this season. When he struggles, however, that should be time to give Torrence a more extended look. Especially if he plays well.
5. What Does The Loss Mean?
I liked the mentality of Buddy Boeheim. Being the guy, trying to take over, finding ways to score despite the aggressive, physical nature of Virginia focusing all of its attention on him. That's what really good players should do. But Syracuse needs someone else to step up and needs to play better defensively. This puts Syracuse in a spot where the consecutive winning seasons streak could be in jeopardy. The next five games are critical. Games at Miami, at Wake Forest, and then three straight home games against Pittsburgh, Florida State and Clemson. Syracuse may need to win three of those games to keep itself afloat. If Syracuse can win one of the two road games and the three home games, perhaps it puts itself back into the bubble conversation. But this was certainly a winnable home game that could haunt the Orange as much as the Colgate and Georgetown games.
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