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Coming off a convincing season-opening win against Lafayette on Tuesday, Syracuse returned to host Drexel in the Carrier Dome. The Orange — backed by 20 points from Joe Girard III, who made all five of his 3-point attempts — defeated the Leopards. Four other SU players recorded double-digit points in the 97-63 win.

Drexel also opened the season with a blowout win, beating Neumann 103-74, but the Dragons were held to just 60 points in their 15-point loss to Syracuse. Buddy Boeheim led Syracuse’s offense with a team-high 23 points, and the Orange’s defense created 20 turnovers in the win.

Here are some observations from SU’s 75-60 home win over Drexel:

Buddy leads Syracuse’s offense

Buddy scored 18 points against Lafayette — second-most on SU — but also tied a team-high with 14 shot attempts. But the senior opened Sunday’s game shooting more efficiently, making two of his first three shots (both 3-pointers) to give the Orange an early advantage.

After SU’s 2-3 zone defense tipped a Drexel pass that Jimmy Boeheim picked out of the air, Buddy found his way to the right side of the perimeter, where he drilled a transition 3. But Buddy missed his next five shots during the opening half before Girard found him for another transition 3 that he buried.

Syracuse gave Buddy more chances to operate in one-on-ones from the high post. He was able to create space for himself by backing down defenders and using his 6-foot-6 frame to rise over them. Buddy finished the game 3-of-6 from 3, and he made all four of his free throw attempts.

Edwards, rest of defense stop Drexel

The Orange’s defense closed passing lanes and forced Drexel into several traps. Girard — at the top of the zone — had three steals and Cole Swider — at the bottom — notched five, frequently intercepting tipped passes or outright picking the ball out of the air.

Center Jesse Edwards recorded two of his team-high five blocks during Syracuse’s run to start the second half, dominating the paint throughout the 21 minutes he played. The Netherlands native has become SU’s go-to starting center after it was announced that Bourama Sidibe would miss about the first month of the season with a knee injury.

Through two games, Syracuse has notched 22 steals and 10 blocks, and Edwards alone has blocked seven shots. While Drexel was able to find openings on the wing for 3-pointers, Edwards altered or blocked several shots in the paint, limiting the Dragons to just 16 points in the paint compared to SU’s 40.

Syracuse rides hot second-half start

SU went through an extended drought in the middle of the first half, not recording any points for over five minutes before Edwards connected on a layup off a Buddy pass with 4:18 remaining in the half.

But the Orange came out strong to start the final 20 minutes, opening on a 16-6 to take a nine-point lead over the Dragons. The run was keyed by forced turnovers, 3-pointers and easy looks inside.

After Swider opened SU’s second-half scoring with a 3-pointer, Girard recorded a steal and pushed the ball ahead in transition. Girard then received the ball on the perimeter and drilled the 3-pointer to put Syracuse up by five. Then, after Edwards poked a Drexel pass intended for the high post, Jimmy ran the length of the floor, received the ball and converted easily on a right-handed floater in the paint, putting Drexel on its heels after halftime.

Drexel gets open looks from 3 in first half

Syracuse’s 2-3 zone defense is known for forcing teams to take 3-pointers, and early on, Drexel found its best offensive production came on wing 3-pointers. In the first half, the Dragons shot 7-for-17 from beyond the arc, a 41.2% clip, after shooting just 25% from 3-point range in the first half of their game against Neumann.

Forward Mate Okros made his first four shots — three of which were 3-pointers — with several coming off broken plays that left him wide-open from deep. After a loose ball in the first half left multiple players diving on the ground, Okros received a pass on the right side of the arc and stepped into a clean look that he swished.

Later, Drexel worked the ball around the perimeter, and Girard couldn’t close on guard Tre Brown in time, and the graduate student knocked down the 3-pointer to give the Dragons a 26-23 lead. A few plays later, Melik Martin hit a jump shot that increased the lead to five, leading head coach Jim Boeheim to call a timeout after a 10-0 run by Drexel.

Drexel’s Camren Wynter closed out the first half 3-point shooting spree by hitting one right in front of the Syracuse bench, giving the Dragons a one-point lead heading into halftime. It was Drexel’s 17th attempt from 3-point range in the first half, and it converted seven of them, missing on several other easy chances where the Orange left a shooter unmarked.

But in the second half, Drexel went 3-for-10 from beyond the arc and wasn’t able to find the same opportunities it did in the first 20 minutes.

Offensive fouls pile up

Four of SU’s five fouls in the first half came off of offensive fouls. Two of the fouls were illegal screens, while one was called on Frank Anselem on an offensive rebounding attempt and another on Jimmy for wrapping his arm around a defender while driving.

On the first call, Girard was called for an illegal screen just inside the halfcourt line. Boeheim popped out of his chair to contest the call, yelling at a referee on the other side of the court that the Drexel player “was running into him.”

Right before halftime, Edwards was called for an illegal screen after an inbounds play underneath Drexel’s basket. Edwards tried to free up Girard for an open look with time winding down in the half, but the foul call gave the ball back to the Dragons. Wynter responded with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

On one play in the second half, Swider tried to drive baseline and shoot over the Drexel defender, but he was called for a charge, SU’s fifth offensive foul of the game to that point. But the lack of fouls called on the Orange defensively (seven) helped, as the Dragons were only able to attempt six shots from the free throw line.

Published on November 14, 2021 at 7:07 pm

Contact Connor: csmith49@syr.edu | @csmith17_