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BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Syracuse began its season with three straight home wins over nonconference opponents. Though SU’s record was perfect, its performance wasn’t. In their season-opener against Le Moyne, the Orange needed a last-second Chris Bell steal and free throws to eke out an 86-82 win.

Then Syracuse survived an upset bid versus Colgate, defeating the Raiders 74-72 after a defensive stand on the final possession. SU had one last chance to prepare for the Legends Classic against Youngstown State. However, it needed two overtimes before prevailing 104-95.

As it did throughout its first three games, Syracuse struggled out of the gate. UT began the game on a 9-0 run, never relinquishing its lead in the first half. The Longhorns led 41-30 at halftime. But the Orange chipped away at their deficit, tying the game 56-56 with just over six minutes remaining — their first time not trailing since 0-0. SU took a brief lead with four minutes left, but the Longhorns prevailed down the stretch to hand it its first loss this season.

Here are some observations from Syracuse’s (3-1, Atlantic Coast Conference) 70-66 loss to Texas (4-1, Southeastern Conference):

Slow start

Throughout their nonconference slate, slow starts plagued the Orange. Against a high-powered Longhorns offense, it immediately put them behind. After Texas forward Kadin Shedrick scored from inside on Texas’ first possession, SU worked the ball around the court. As Eddie Lampkin Jr. got a touch down low, the Longhorns swarmed him, leaving Jaquan Carlos open in the opposite corner.

Despite getting a wide-open look, Carlos was off the mark — a consistent theme for Syracuse. Each of SU’s first five shots came from behind the arc, all not going through the net. While the Orange couldn’t muster anything offensively, UT cruised. Though he missed his first shot, Tre Johnson knocked down a catch-and-shoot corner 3, giving the Longhorns a 5-0 lead a minute in.

Bell then missed a triple of his own, and Texas got out in transition, leading to an easy alley-oop for Shedrick. After Bell coughed the ball up on the ensuing possession, the Longhorns extended their lead to 9-0 on an Arthur Kaluma fast break layup. This forced Adrian Autry to call a timeout two-and-a-half minutes into the game.

Defensive adjustments

Following Autry’s timeout, the Orange displayed a 2-3 zone defensively. In its first three games, and the beginning of the bout with UT, Syracuse’s defense has consistently struggled. SU’s 104.7 adjusted defensive efficiency ranked 173rd in the nation entering the contest, according to KenPom.

While the 2-3 zone was Jim Boeheim’s go-to defensive set, Autry hasn’t displayed it much in his time at the helm. The new alignment initially held the Longhorns scoreless for over two minutes, but Syracuse only mustered three points.

While UT mostly maintained its nine-point lead for the next several minutes, it began figuring out the Orange’s defensive adjustment midway through the half. After working the ball along the top of the key, the Longhorns dished down low to Kaluma near the free throw line. As Kaluma received the ball, Ze’Rik Onyema cut along the baseline, setting himself up for an easy dunk that gave Texas a 19-8 lead.

Following an SU miss, the Longhorns ran the same set. Though this time, Julian Larry faked a pass to the baseline while Tramon Mark — aided by a screen — was left open at the top of the key. He drew nylon from 3, extending UT’s lead to 22-8.

While Syracuse had spurts of success, it never cut into Texas’ lead, trailing 41-30 at halftime. Throughout the second half, where the Orange played some of their best basketball of the season, they alternated between man and zone defense. The Longhorns scored just 29 points while shooting 10-of-30 from the field.

Containing Tre Johnson

Entering the contest, Texas phenom freshman guard Johnson averaged 23.5 points per game while shooting 58.9% from the field and 58.6% from 3. Meanwhile, the Orange’s guards have struggled drastically defensively.

When SU began the game playing man-to-man, J.J. Starling defended Johnson. Though the five-star freshman knocked down his first 3-pointer, Syracuse held him scoreless from beyond the arc the rest of the half.

With Starling ferociously guarding him man-to-man late in the first half, Johnson air-balled an attempt from the left wing. However, a couple of possessions before that, he nailed a turnaround jumper over Starling. Johnson had seven points on 3-of-7 shooting in the opening 20 minutes.

Johnson didn’t attempt his first shot of the second half for nearly three-and-a-half minutes. As part of SU’s 2-3 zone, Carlos picked him up at the top of the key. Though he was highly contested, Johnson fired off a mid-range shot. A possession later, he misfired from 3. Then, a minute-and-a-half later, he was called for a carry while in transition.

For the remainder of the half, he was quiet. After getting subbed back in near the 10-minute mark, Johnson missed another 3. With seven minutes remaining, he squandered an open look beyond the right wing that could’ve extended UT’s lead to seven. When Syracuse tied the game at 56-56 and 58-58, Johnson missed shots each time that would’ve given the Longhorns the lead.

While Johnson struggled, he couldn’t be contained forever. After a Lampkin free throw gave SU its first lead, he instantly answered with a mid-range snipe to regain UT a 60-59 lead. After getting fouled by Starling with a minute remaining, Johnson nailed two free throws — extending UT’s lead to three. He then converted on four more from the charity stripe, securing Texas’ win. The freshman finished with 16 points, shooting 4-of-18 from the field and 1-of-7 from 3.

Second-half spurt

Basketball is a game of runs. However, Syracuse struggled to generate any runs throughout its first seven halves of the season. Trailing 50-37 three minutes into the second half, Syracuse desperately needed one. Following a two-minute stalemate, the Orange got what they needed.

First, Lampkin banked home a mid-range shot from the free throw line. Then, Carlos drew a charge before Lampkin converted on an and-one to cut Syracuse’s deficit to 50-42. Trying to end the run, UT was called for an illegal screen, giving the ball right back to the Orange.

SU again turned to Lampkin, who emphatically slammed home a dunk. This forced a Texas timeout, prompting Lampkin to celebrate by dapping up Kiyan Anthony sitting courtside. Though the Longhorns scored out of the timeout, the Orange netted the next six. This cut their deficit to 52-51 midway through the second half.

While UT built its lead back up to 56-52, a Johnson miss from beyond the arc halted its momentum. This propelled Starling to score four straight, tying the game 56-56 at the 6:17 mark. The teams traded scores over the next couple of minutes, but a Lampkin free throw with four minutes remaining gave SU a 59-58 advantage — its first lead of the game.

However, the Orange couldn’t hold on. While Starling regained SU a 61-60 lead after Johnson gave the Longhorns a 60-59 lead, Chendall Weaver answered with a second-chance layup.

Trailing by three with 15.8 seconds remaining after Starling cashed in a mid-range shot, SU forced a turnover. However, it couldn’t complete the comeback, falling by four.

Published on November 21, 2024 at 9:38 pm

Contact Justin: justingirshon@gmail.com | @JustinGirshon