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On Monday, Syracuse seemed like it was cruising to its first 5-0 start since 2017 after draining six 3-pointers in the first six minutes against Penn State in its first road game of the season. It only felt more certain when the Orange held a 21-point lead over the Lady Lions in the third quarter. 

But Syracuse was outscored 37-14 in the game’s final quarter, eventually losing 82-69. Penn State shot 65% from the field compared to SU’s 40% in the fourth quarter.

SU returned to its home floor on Friday, hosting Bucknell, who entered on a two-game winning streak after losing its first three. After a horrific offensive production in the first quarter, Dyaisha Fair single-handedly took control of the game in the second quarter, getting the Orange to a 28-20 lead by halftime. With the help of strong defense and continued offensive production, Syracuse easily closed out the second-half.

Here are some observations from SU’s (5-1, 0-0 Atlantic Coast) 65-46 win over Bucknell (2-4, 0-0 Patriot):

Fair takes control

After a slow offensive start in the first quarter, which saw Fair make the Orange’s only field goals in the period, Syracuse’s leading scorer took complete control of the offense for Syracuse, scoring 16 of SU’s 22 points in the second quarter, finishing with 20 by halftime. Fair scored a new season-high 25 points and also added four assists and three rebounds.

Fair made a couple of 3s, including one from the left wing and another from the top of the key, where she stepped back and was contacted, but no foul was called. She also hit an off-balance floater in the paint.

Asia Strong’s hook shot inside that gave SU a 16-12 lead would be the Orange’s first field goal that didn’t come from fair. But on the next SU possession, Fair continued, knocking down a midrange jumper.

On the first play of the third, Fair found Dariauna Lewis inside for an easy 2. Then after Lewis blocked a Blake Matthews jumper, Lewis dribbled to the key before passing to Fair inside. Fair returned it to Lewis on a give-and-go. And to get her first points of the second half, Fair swished a 3-pointer from the right wing with a defender in front of her.

Abysmal first quarter offense

In the first quarter against the Lady Lions on Monday, the Orange went 10-of-17 from the field, scoring 27 points and draining six 3s within the first six minutes. But against Bucknell, it was the polar opposite for Syracuse.

Syracuse finished just 2-of-12 from the field, totaling just six points in the quarter. It went 0-of-2 from beyond the arc and had seven turnovers. Bucknell was strong defensively inside, forcing bad shots from Strong and Lewis. On a few possessions, Georgia Woolley had a pass stolen in the right corner, Lewis traveled on the baseline and Kyra Wood carried the ball. By the game’s end, the Orange finished with 13 turnovers.

Fair’s jumper was the only points for Syracuse in the first seven minutes. The Orange were prone to taking low-quality shots, including jumpers from Lewis and a 3-pointer. A fast-break layup by Fair and two free-throws by Wood added the final four points to the lowest-scoring quarter for the Orange since Feb. 17 against Virginia Tech.

Shutting down the Bison

Just over two minutes into the third quarter, Teisha Hyman and Strong trapped Remi Sisselman in the right wing. Hyman stole the ball and advanced it forward to Fair, who found Strong down low. With contact, Strong made the layup and converted the and-one, too.

Lewis also had a couple of blocks in the third quarter. She blocked a Matthews midrange jumper, which allowed the Orange to transition. On another play near the baseline, Lewis blocked a Cecilia Collins layup attempt, leaving just 1.1 seconds on the shot clock. In the fourth quarter, after Fair knocked down a pair of free throws, the guard stole the ball on ensuing Bucknell inbound pass, which culminated on a Woolley 3-pointer from the left wing.

Bucknell struggled from the field, scoring just 10 points in both quarters of the first half. And it struggled from beyond the arc, finishing just 2-of-21. In its first three games of the season, Bucknell didn’t pass the 50-point mark, and on Friday, it continued that trend with just 48 points on 33.3% shooting from the field.

Woolley gets the start

Woolley started for the first time in a Syracuse uniform. In previous games, she came off the bench and replaced Alaina Rice. Woolley had missed a couple games for SU, battling a small injury. But she started against Bucknell, finishing with three points and six rebounds in 25 minutes of play.

On one play in the first quarter, she recorded two offensive rebounds, including one where she drew a foul on Matthews. On SU’s second — and last — field goal of the period, she found Fair on a fast-break, launching a deep pass to the streaking Fair who made the easy two.

She had a few turnovers, too. In the third quarter, she was about to pass to Fair, who was sneaking into the paint, but because the pass wasn’t there, Woolley ended up traveling. In the first quarter, she also had a pass stolen in the right corner. And on a transition play, she airballed an elbow jumper.

Published on November 25, 2022 at 9:04 pm

Contact Cole: colebambini@gmail.com | @ColeBambini