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Dyaisha Fair rebounded the ball off of a Stony Brook miss in close and pushed the ball up the court on Syracuse’s first possession of the second quarter. Arriving at the top of the key, she took a couple hesitation dribbles, testing Stoney Brook’s Kelis Corley.

After seeing nothing to capitalize on, she motioned for Dariauna Lewis to set a screen. Maneuvering off Lewis’ help, and with Corley no longer draped all over her, Fair probed the Seawolves’ defense, jabbing right around the free-throw line extended before stepping back behind the three-point line. The move gave Fair more than enough space to can the jumper to put Syracuse up, 20-19. 

Not able to get on the board until that three-point make, Fair controlled the tempo of the game to cover for her shooting struggles. She went on to finish with 18 points and four assists in Syracuse’s (1-0, 0-0 Atlantic Coast) dominant 79-56 win over Stony Brook (0-1, 0-0 Colonial Athletic). 

Early on, SU relied on Fair to spark a stagnant offense through most of the first half. The Orange seemed to run a whole host of different offensive sets in the half court, but a lot of them ended up in isolation plays with the ball in Fair’s hands. Forced to take on her defender or spot up for a pull-up three, Fair played inefficiently during the first quarter.

“We figured out if we distracted their defender while another person was driving, we’d be able to create openings for myself and others,” Fair said. “Once we figured that out it was easier in the second half.”

Toward the end of the second quarter, things started to click a little more for Fair and the rest of the Syracuse offense. Although the Orange still struggled with their movement off the ball and finding open cutters, Fair got into the paint and dished it off to her teammates. 

With over four minutes left in the first half, Fair caught the ball a few steps behind the three-point line. Just 15 seconds remained on the shot clock as SU had once again been caught up in empty perimeter passing. Going to her favorite move, Fair started her hesitation dribble.

While this was happening, Georgia Woolley curled from down low to the free throw line. But Fair continued to dribble, watching as Woolley relocated to the right corner. Fair gave her defender another quick crossover and drove to the middle before quickly rising up in swift preparation to shoot. But at the last second, Fair kicked the ball out to Woolley, who stood crouched in anticipation. Wooley fired and hit, increasing the SU lead to six.

“She’s fast,” said Teisha Hyman, Fair’s backcourt partner.

One thing that did stay consistent throughout the contest was Fair’s ability to push the pace with or without the ball. Off of a Stony Brook miss or make, Fair was streaking down the court all game long with her head up, looking to finish the play off herself, or find a teammate for an easy deuce.

At the end of the first half, with SU up by seven, Stony Brook’s Gigi Gonzalez missed a shot. Alaina Rice corralled the rebound, only needing to take one dribble before finding Fair ahead of the pack with a long outlet pass. Catching the ball in stride, Fair laid the ball up with ease as Syracuse’s lead became nine points.

On the ensuing possession, Pittman missed down low and a tussle for the rebound saw the ball end up in Hyman’s hands. Hyman took one dribble and looked up to pass — Fair was already at the oppositions three-point line. Fair caught the pass, took one dribble and cupped the ball high over her head, leaving her defender Daishai Almond in the dust. Two steps later and Fair had her second consecutive wide-open layup to make the score 37-26 in favor of Syracuse.

“I get to watch this every game,” Legette-Jack said on the chemistry between Fair and Hyman. “To me, they’re the best one-two punch in the country.”

Published on November 7, 2022 at 8:42 pm

Contact Tyler: trschiff@syr.edu | @theTylerSchiff