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Eight days after becoming Syracuse’s first female athlete to have her jersey number retired, Felisha Legette-Jack will face her alma mater for the first time. Legette-Jack will lead Buffalo into the seventh-place matchup of the Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament against an Orange side that has fallen below .500 for the first time this season.

After a 24-point loss to No. 23 South Florida in the first round of the tournament, Syracuse narrowly fell to Minnesota 70-63, a defeat defined by the Orange’s defensive errors. SU allowed 27 points in the game’s third quarter and shot 31.9% from the field. But the Orange improved upon their 3-point percentage, shooting seven-for-22, and Chrislyn Carr shot 40% from deep.

Christianna Carr recorded 16 points against Minnesota and has recorded at least 14 points in her last three games. She’s currently Syracuse’s leading point scorer.

Before Syracuse (2-3, 0-1 Atlantic Coast) takes on Buffalo (1-2, 0-0 Mid-American Conference) in its final game of the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament, here’s what you need to know about the Bulls.

All-time series

Buffalo leads 4-3.

Last time they played

Syracuse emerged victorious in an early regular-season matchup with the Bulls in 2011. Led by Carmen Tyson-Thomas’ career-high 23 points, Syracuse cruised to a 79-59 point victory at the Carrier Dome. Iasia Hemingway and Kayla Alexander also recorded double-figures with 18 and 15 points, respectively.

SU shot 44.1% from the field, 40% from behind the arc and scored 30 points off turnovers. The Orange’s 20-point victory was the fourth of their six-game win streak to start the 2011-12 season, a season which saw Syracuse fall in the Women’s National Invitation Tournament semifinals to James Madison.

The Bulls report

Prior to Battle 4 Atlantis, Buffalo played just one tune-up game, a 60-point victory over a Canisius side, which last won in Feb. 2020. Then 11 days later, the Bulls tipped off against No. 1 South Carolina in the Bahamas and lost by 28 points. Buffalo trailed by only three points after the opening quarter, which saw it shoot nearly 50 percent from the field — a percentage that decreased each quarter to the point where the Bulls shot just two-for-15 in the final period.

How Syracuse beats Buffalo

Syracuse struggled defensively against Minnesota because SU was simply outsized. That’s a problem the Orange have dealt with the entire season, especially in its three losses so far. It’s something that will only become more costly throughout the remainder of the season.

But acting head coach Vonn Read has said that Syracuse needs to rely on its speed to overcome that. Chrislyn is Syracuse’s shortest player standing at 5-foot-5, yet she’s logged the most minutes on the team. Her transition game has been exactly what Read has preached early on this season, and when given the opportunity to sink in close-range shots, she can be unstoppable. So while Syracuse may not outrebound the Bulls, it can surely rely on speed and winning the game in transition.

Player to watch: Summer Hemphill, forward, No. 0

In Summer Hemphill’s fifth season playing for her hometown school, she recorded a career-high 26 points in Buffalo’s loss to Oklahoma. Hemphill went 10-for-22 from the field and notched two 3-pointers. But the redshirt fifth-year also posted 12 rebounds, leading the team with seven defensive rebounds. Hemphill is also second on the team with 23 rebounds.

Hemphill was held to just six points and a rebound against South Carolina rebound. But against the Sooners, Hemphill kept Buffalo in contention early on, scoring 10 of its 17 first-quarter points, giving the Bulls a two-point lead after the opening 10 minutes. While Buffalo was down 12 points at halftime, Hemphill scored nearly half of the team’s 33 points and managed seven rebounds.

Against a Syracuse side that struggles in the paint and is still sorting out its overall chemistry, the game will be wide open for Hemphill to maintain those numbers.

Stat to know: 25% 3-point field goal percentage

Buffalo hasn’t made more than five 3-pointers in a game thus far. The Bulls have shot just 14-for-56 from beyond the arc, with Dyaisha Fair leading the team with four 3s on 15 attempts. Against Oklahoma, Buffalo shot just 5-for-22 from 3-point range, which was the biggest factor leading to the Bulls’ 21 point loss. This low percentage should continue against the Orange, whose opponents have recorded a 3-point field goal percentage over 35% just once, which came in the near 30-point loss to Notre Dame. If Syracuse — which averages 28.5% from beyond the paint — contains Buffalo from long-range, it should be able to keep the game close against an inconsistent Bulls squad.

Published on November 22, 2021 at 8:53 am

Contact Alex: ahcirino@syr.edu