Alexis Peterson caught the ball wide open in the left corner behind the 3-point line and set her feet. Only one player on the Syracuse bench, which normally emphatically reacts to any SU 3 attempt, stood up.

But Peterson didn’t shoot. She drove to the basket for a layup instead.

Syracuse shied away from the barrage of 3-pointers it’s known for. A team that’s goal is to shoot 30 3s and make 10 per game fell well short of that, finishing with just four makes on 13 attempts. But the No. 23 Orange (22-6, 12-3 Atlantic Coast), fresh off an upset of No. 10 Florida State on Thursday, turned to layups and midrange jumpers instead. The Orange shot 49 percent from the floor to beat Pittsburgh (12-15, 4-10), 70-56, at the Peterson Events Center on Sunday and extend its winning streak to eight games.

Brianna Butler, the NCAA’s active leader in 3-pointers, led SU with 20 points, but the Orange took its least amount of 3s all season.

“We have a versatile team and they’re going to be able to … make shots at the rim and do what they need to win basketball games,” SU head coach Quentin Hillsman said.

After taking an early lead, Syracuse hit a shooting drought midway through the first quarter. In a span of less than seven minutes, SU missed 9-of-10 shots and turned the ball over twice.

When it finally ended, SU’s 14-9 lead had been turned into a 26-16 deficit.

“We just weren’t really getting quality looks and when we got good looks we just didn’t hit shots,” Hillsman said. “… They did a good job of taking away our 3-point stuff.”

But then SU fell back on its press and moving the ball inside. Brittney Sykes hit a layup, and Butler stole the ensuing inbound pass and tossed an underhand shot in. Peterson stole an errant pass and drove the length of the floor for a lay in to give Syracuse a 38-35 lead going into the half.

Though SU has shot more than 40 3s in a game three times, it was just 2-for-6 at the half. Pittsburgh was running over the top of screens, covering shooters at the arc, Hillsman said, and getting in their faces.

The Orange stretched its lead to nine by the end of the third, despite just taking one long shot the entire period.

When Butler, the only person to make a 3 for SU, drilled three 3-pointers in the fourth, they only served as cushion for an already solidified lead.

“We really took our opportunities when they were available and I thought that they became available,” Hillsman said. “We got some drive and kicks late in the game, but we were getting turnovers and getting to the rim.”

Syracuse will visit Boston College on Thursday at 7 p.m. for its final regular season game.

Published on February 21, 2016 at 7:01 pm

Contact Jon: jrmettus@syr.edu | @jmettus