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Buddy Boeheim shoved Reece Beekman as he crossed halfcourt, attempting to knock the Virginia guard off balance. Syracuse’s press had once again set up two Marek Dolezaj free throws, but Beekman breezed up the court and flung the ball up the court.

Underneath the Orange’s basket, Jay Huff stood all alone. He caught the ball, rose and dunked as SU’s last defender tried to claw back. On the next possession, Huff dunked again — giving him a double-double and a career-high 19 points, and putting the Cavaliers (11-2, 7-0 Atlantic Coast) up 17 with seven minutes left.

Syracuse picked up its best win of the season against Virginia Tech on Saturday, and had another opportunity to do so against the Cavaliers. But the Orange (9-5, 3-4) struggled to defend against No. 8 UVA’s shooters in the zone and find a rhythm of its own, losing 81-58 in Charlottesville on Monday night.

Here are three takeaways from the loss.

Virginia 3s and a porous zone

Sam Hauser flashed to the high post on Virginia’s first offensive possession, facilitating a possession that ultimately ended with the ball bouncing off Huff’s foot in the corner for a turnover. But then the Cavaliers found success using point guard Kihei Clark in that spot, having him drop down from the wings after the ball rotated toward the corner.

That switch caused trouble for Syracuse, and two Virginia possessions ended in dunks by Huff at the rim. And it allowed Hauser to consistently hit 3-pointers — seven total — as another option as the ball continued to cycle.

Virginia finished 14-for-31 on 3s, and continually torched the Orange and made them pay for leaving shooters open. Defensive struggles continued for most of the game, whether it was Hauser, Huff or Clark flashing up high. Syracuse struggled to defend after the ball worked its way inside, converging on the Cavalier in the high post and leaving the wings and corners wide open.

On one possession in the first half, Huff sprinted to the high post, pivoted and hit Hauser in the corner for a 3. Then, on the next possession, the 7-foot-1 center positioned himself near the top at the key, glanced at the extra step Syracuse’s defense gave him and rose for a shot. It sunk through the net, and SU called a timeout less than three minutes into the second half.

Slowing down Guerrier at first, Buddy’s struggles continue

Through Syracuse’s first 13 games, Guerrier has transformed into the focal point of the offense. He averages nearly a double-double. He’s topped 20 points four times, most recently sparking the Orange’s upset win against then-No. 16 Virginia Tech. And because of all those performances, his NBA draft stock has skyrocketed.

But Virginia forced Guerrier into his worst half of the season, finishing with just four points on 2-for-8 shooting. Hauser primarily guarded the sophomore forward, not allowing him to command post-up opportunities or opportunities on the blocks.

Taking away Syracuse’s primary scoring option helped create a nine-point lead heading into halftime. But as Guerrier eventually found ways to score, and still wound up leading the Orange with 15 points. Buddy didn’t. He finished 4-for-13 from the field, including 1-for-8 from behind the arc, and has scored just 16 points after scoring a season-high 23 against Miami.

Back to the 3s

Syracuse managed to cruise past the Hokies two days ago because it abandoned the 3-point shot — one it has struggled to make throughout the season — and began driving inside. But during a five-minute scoring drought in the first half, the Orange took, and missed, five 3-pointers, creating a deficit that eventually followed it into halftime.

Guerrier started the misses with a shot from the right wing. Then, as Virginia’s pack-line defense brought the shot clock within the final 10 seconds, Griffin launched a 3-pointer from way behind the arc. Girard missed on the next possession, too.

But with Virginia connecting from deep for most of the game, Syracuse needed to resort to the deep ball to stay close. It finished 5-for-24 from behind the arc, dropping its 32% rate this season that ranks in the country’s bottom third.

Those forced 3s, and the double-digit lead that resulted, forced Syracuse to implement its press with about 11 minutes left in the second half. Jim Boeheim called a timeout after Joe Girard III hit a 3-pointer, and SU forced turnovers on the next two Virginia possessions.

But the Orange couldn’t convert those opportunities into points. Kadary Richmond missed a shot, turned the ball over and subbed out for Buddy.

Published on January 25, 2021 at 9:02 pm

Contact Andrew: arcrane@syr.edu | @CraneAndrew