Syracuse didn’t face much resistance while blowing out Florida Southern, 96-54, in the Carrier Dome on Sunday.

The Mocs scored just 22 first-half points, which was a testament to the Orange’s active zone in its final preseason scrimmage. But SU’s defense is expected to frazzle an inferior Division II opponent, so here are three takeaways that don’t have as much of a bearing on the level of competition.

SU opens its regular season at home against Lehigh at 7 p.m. on Friday.

1. Kaleb Joseph could draw attention as a 3-point threat

Joseph’s been labeled by SU head coach Jim Boeheim as Syracuse’s most improved player, and the sophomore looked like it on Sunday.

He finished with 13 points in 15 minutes off the bench, shooting 4-for-5 from the field and 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. More impressively, Joseph scored 11 points in seven first-half minutes while not missing a shot. That included 3s on the first two possessions after he checked into the game at the 13:55 mark.

“He shot well, when you make shots everything is easy and he got a couple early shots and knocked them down,” Boeheim said. “He’s shooting the ball much better and we knew that from practices. He’s much stronger this year.”

With Michael Gbinije now starting at point guard for the Orange, Joseph is coming off the bench after starting in that spot last season. Boeheim said he isn’t concerned with how Joseph will adjust to the new role, and the way Joseph played against the Mocs shouldn’t give him any reason to for the time being.

“That’s not something I worry about,” Boeheim said of Joseph’s adjustment. “I have enough things I have to worry about. I’m more worried about what I’m eating for dinner tonight than I am worried about that.”

2. The wheels are turning slowly for Dajuan Coleman

Coleman is returning from a year and a half away from the court, and that’s exactly what he looked like against Florida Southern.

The Orange’s starting center finished with seven points and shot just 2-of-8 from the field. He grabbed seven rebounds, but there were also a lot of missed shots that he didn’t get to. He had a team-high three fouls in just 21 minutes.

The Mocs front court was taller than Le Moyne’s, with Dylan Karell listed 6 feet 11 inches, and Jarel Spellman at 6 feet 10 inches. But Coleman couldn’t capitalize on a significant weight advantage over every Florida Southern big, and his touch around the rim wasn’t there.

It’s expected, and reasonable, for Coleman to have a slow start after so much time away from the court. But the Orange lacks depth at center and will need his production when competition stiffens later in the month.

“Obviously you’re going to be rusty,” Boeheim said. “I think he’s doing some good things, real positive things. It’s just going to be a slow process, it’s going to take a long time to get back into it.”

3. Even as the starting point guard, Gbinije will get off the ball a lot

With the first half winding down, Trevor Cooney took an in-bounds pass under the Syracuse basket and started moving the ball up court. In past seasons, Cooney’s brought the ball up off outlet passes that set him loose into the open floor. But with Gbinije on the court, Cooney gave Gbinije an opportunity to work off a double down screen and operate off the ball.

Sunday, as much as anything, provided a look at how the Syracuse backcourt will operate this season.

Gbinije may be the starting point guard, but the rotation is full of ball-handlers that can give him the chance to attack defenses in different ways. That includes Cooney moonlighting at point guard, as many as five players pushing the ball in transition and Joseph running the half-court offense when playing with Gbinije.

“Mike doesn’t need to be our one primary ball-handler. He’s really good off the ball too,” Cooney said. “… If we can get him off there and him coming off screens and going downhill on people, he’s one of the best guys in the country at doing that. We definitely want to get him off the ball as much as we can and help him out.”

Florida Southern tried pestering Gbinije by having smaller defenders pick him up full court. That’s a strategy Boeheim expects the 6-foot-7 Gbinije to see this season, and his four turnovers were the only stains on an otherwise impressive line of 14 points on 4-of-8 shooting with five assists.

But it will be harder for teams to pressure Gbinije in the backcourt if Cooney and others can also handle the ball, and they’re looking ready to do so.

“Anybody can bring it up,” Gbinije said. “… Instead of designating a ball-handler, it’s just whoever is the closest guy just take it.”

Published on November 8, 2015 at 6:29 pm