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Pregame, Jyare Davis walks back and forth across halfcourt multiple times. He uses the time to settle himself, thinking of where he’s been and where he’s at now. He then prays and gets into his warmup.

The Delaware transfer is no longer an inexperienced player. He’s in his fifth season in college basketball. But Wednesday evening ahead of his Syracuse debut, Davis did the same routine to calm any tension surrounding the contest.

“It does a lot for me,” Davis said of his routine. “Growing up as a player, I always put a lot of pressure on myself. Games where I didn’t play well, I really upset myself. I think now I’m growing in my faith and growing as a person.”

Davis didn’t crack the starting lineup in his first game with the Orange. But when SU starting center Eddie Lampkin Jr. recorded his second foul in six minutes, Davis was thrust into the fold. The Newark, Delaware, native thrived, totaling a team-high 22 points and 12 rebounds on 77% shooting in 26 minutes, helping Syracuse (1-0, 0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) hold off Le Moyne (0-1, 0-0 Northeast Conference) 86-82.

The Orange didn’t play anywhere close to their best and clawed their way out of a decimating opening-night loss. But postgame, Syracuse head coach Adrian Autry didn’t shy away from acknowledging the key to victory for his squad.

“If (Davis) didn’t come in and do what he does, we would’ve lost the game,” Autry said. “Without Jyare Davis, we don’t win this game. It’s simple.”

Despite being one of Syracuse’s most experienced players, Davis doesn’t play a flashy role. He’s a small-ball forward whose 6-foot-7 frame is paired with a 220-pound build, making him a physical presence inside.

Davis comes off the bench and will likely continue to in his lone season with the Orange. But it’s a role he’s “completely fine with,” knowing he can trust how Autry will use him when needed.

“I believe that he’s gonna put me out there,” Davis said. “When I get out there, I’m ready to go.”

Autry did need him. Lampkin’s second foul prompted Davis to enter the game with 13:51 remaining in the first half and Syracuse trailing 12-8. He immediately made his presence felt on the glass, recording two defensive rebounds.

After dishing an assist to Petar Majstorovic, Davis got on the board for the first time. The forward was isolated on the right side of the court in the post and went to work, jab-stepping baseline before putting the ball on the floor and backing down his defender. Davis dribbled, then gathered with his left inside and finished through the traffic plus a foul.

“He played very aggressively, which we need him to be,” guard J.J. Starling said of Davis. “He dominated inside, and he also dominated rebounding. And that’s what we expect from Jyare, that’s his game.”

As Lampkin spent the rest of the half on the bench, Davis excelled. He got to the free-throw line multiple times while also converting on a few layups off offensive rebounds. Davis closed the first half with nine points and seven rebounds in 13 minutes.

In his Syracuse debut, transfer forward Jyare Davis (pictured, No. 13) provided a boost off the bench with a 22-point, 12-rebound double-double. Aaron Hammer | Staff Photographer

Davis revealed postgame that Autry “pushes him more than any coach has ever pushed him in his life.” Every day it’s a continuous drive. And it came to fruition against the Dolphins.

A minute into his second-half shift, which began at the 13:10 mark, Davis took a quick pass from Donnie Freeman and muscled inside to force a foul. He converted the pair of free throws and on the next possession, put his back to the basket before fading and kissing a shot off the glass to put Syracuse up 58-57 with 11:25 to play.

With Lampkin still on the bench, Freeman received a pass from Jaquan Carlos at the top of the key and took a hard right-handed dribble to the elbow. He then spun inside and sunk a 15-footer, showing off his soft touch.

Davis went to work throughout the middle portion of the second half as Syracuse and Le Moyne wrestled between leads. He got to the free-throw line often and continued to rule the boards.

With 6:31 to play, Lampkin entered for Freeman as the Orange rode the five-man lineup of Carlos, Starling, Chris Bell, Davis and Lampkin the rest of the way. For the first time, Davis and Lampkin were paired in the front court and both used their physicality and passing skills to flourish.

As Lampkin boxed out Le Moyne’s Isaac Nyakundi, Davis took a clear path to the rack for an easy lay-in to extend SU’s lead to three with six minutes to play. With 4:30 left, Lampkin drew two defenders inside and one baseline, leaving Davis alone under the rim. Lampkin slid the ball behind the back of a defender, and Davis finished it off with a two-hand jam.

Following a Le Moyne answer, Davis caught a pass at the high post and drew a defender, slipping a bounce pass through the paint to Lampkin for a layup, pushing Syracuse’s lead to seven — its largest of the night. The duo rarely touched the floor together, but when they did, they were lethal.

“Being able to just read each other is a good part of our game, and that’s what we did tonight,” Lampkin said of his connection with Davis.

Davis finished off the game with a few more key rebounds, including the final one to seal SU’s first victory of the season.

The forward said postgame he’s still getting his feet wet in his new situation. He started 31 or more games in the past three seasons and is expected to be primarily in a smaller role with the Orange. But in his first chance off the bench, he pushed Syracuse past the finish line.

“I don’t know how many minutes I’m gonna play. Maybe a lot, maybe a little,” Davis said. “But I want to make sure that when I go to sleep at night, I can look back and be like, ‘Hey. The time I was in, I played really hard.’ And I can live with that.”

Published on November 5, 2024 at 1:16 am

Contact Aiden at: amstepan@syr.edu | @AidenStepansky