C.J. Fair had already taken seven shots from the field through 10-plus minutes.

He hit one of them.

The Syracuse forward, who has been SU’s go-to option all season, never got into a rhythm against Boston College.

After hitting two crucial shots against Pittsburgh and the game-winner to beat N.C. State last week, Fair was ineffective when SU needed him most on Wednesday night.

“C.J. goes 7-of-23,” SU head coach Jim Boeheim said, “it’s surprising we’re in the game.”

Fair finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds, but took 23 shots — which is as many as Jerami Grant, Trevor Cooney and Rakeem Christmas took combined. His poor performance magnified No. 1 Syracuse’s (25-1, 12-1 Atlantic Coast) offensive futility in a 62-59 overtime loss to Boston College (7-19, 3-10) in the Carrier Dome, its first of the season.

Syracuse shot just 32.3 percent overall. Though Fair kept the Orange in the game to some degree, he also shot SU out of it, as some of the shots he usually makes clanged off the backboard and didn’t draw iron.

Early on, Fair was extremely aggressive. He bricked a shot from the left side that he usually makes. He shanked a step-back jumper, too.

After the missed shot, Boeheim furrowed his brow and pursed his lips, looking up toward the roof of the Carrier Dome.

To make up for it, Fair hit four free throws in the half and added four layups. He propelled Syracuse to a 25-17 lead at the half.

In a game where Fair had nowhere near his typical mojo, he was still Syracuse’s most potent offensive player.

Considering how poorly his team played offensively for the fourth straight game, Boeheim wasn’t surprised it came out on the losing end.

“We’re not going to win games shooting 32 percent, 16 percent from the 3,” Boeheim said. “It’s really simple. This isn’t complicated. We’ve got to be better on offense. That’s all.”

Fair continued to carry Syracuse in the second half, when SU’s lead ballooned to as much as 13. But then disappeared as BC climbed back.

The Orange needed a spark, but Fair couldn’t provide it. He didn’t score a point in the final 12:57 of regulation. He wasn’t missing, he just simply wasn’t shooting anymore.

He took 18 shots through the game’s first 29 minutes, but just one in the final 10 minutes of regulation.

“My touch was a little off and my shot was going a little too hard,” Fair said.

In overtime, he missed a makeable shot from just outside the paint, but again didn’t connect.

Though some of his shots weren’t even close, Fair didn’t regret any he took.

“Nah, I don’t think I took bad shots,” he said.

Then he paused for five seconds, rubbing his head with one hand and twiddling a piece of plastic from the ice bags on his knees with the other.

“They just weren’t falling.”

Rakeem Christmas said Fair and the rest of Syracuse’s players were taking the shots they usually take, and that it wasn’t a matter of poor shot selection.

And for the first time this year, Syracuse was outplayed for the entire final six or seven minutes. SU shot just 6-of-19 in the final seven minutes of regulation and five minutes of overtime.

It wasn’t Fair’s fault. He was the only player putting the ball in the basket early in the game, but when Boston College swarmed him, he couldn’t make contested shots.

“They packed it in on him tonight,” SU guard Trevor Cooney said, “and they forced him to take tougher shots. But C.J.’s one of the best offensive guys in the country and you’re not going to have one of your best games every night.

“He’s just got to continue to attack and he’ll be fine.”

Published on February 20, 2014 at 1:02 am

Contact Trevor: tbhass@syr.edu | @TrevorHass