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Syracuse entered Tuesday’s matchup with Colgate without a win over its cross-state rivals since 2019. In their last two meetings, the Raiders combined for 37 3-pointers, dismantling the Orange by double-digit margins both times.

Early on, it was more of the same. Colgate controlled the tempo, jumping out to a 16-9 lead after going a perfect 4-for-4 from deep. By halftime, the Raiders held a dominant 46-30 lead.

The Orange opened the second half slowly. They allowed six unanswered and quickly fell behind by 22. Defensively, Colgate laid off of SU’s shooters, feeding off of a slew of outside misses. Then, Syracuse mounted a furious 20-4 run which put it behind 58-50.

For the final 10 minutes, the Orange continued to rally, led by a career-high 25 points from Chris Bell. And after Bell tied the contest at 70-70, a pair of free throws by J.J. Starling and a breakaway Maliq Brown dunk put Syracuse ahead for good.

Here are some observations from Syracuse’s (3-0, 0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) 79-75 win over Colgate (1-1, 0-0 Patriot League):

Rebounding struggles lead builds hefty deficit

As soon as Nicolas Louis-Jacques tied the game at 3-3, an onslaught of makes from deep ensued to give the Raiders a 16-9 lead. By the 15:09 mark, they had gone a perfect 4-for-4 from behind the arc with half of their makes coming off of offensive boards.

Two minutes into the contest, Ryan Moffatt corralled a rebound before relocating and canning a 3-pointer from the top of the key. Then, after layups from Louis-Jacques and Keegan Records, Colgate forward Jeff Woodward gave the Raiders a second opportunity for Moffatt to convert again.

With 7:42 left in the first half, Sam Thomson collected his own miss among the outstretched arms of Benny Williams and Naheem McLeod. It took one pump-fake to lose both big men and Thomson was handed a comfortable, uncontested left-handed layup.

Near the waning minutes before halftime, Kyle Cuffe Jr. had Louis-Jacques smothered. When the Colgate guard tried to drive baseline, Cuffe Jr. cut him off, forcing a miss. Yet, Records beat Brown to the rebound, carving out space in the paint to see Louis-Jacques’ shot nestle into his lap.

With Brown nowhere near the basket, Records snatched down Colgate’s 25th board of the opening half and dropped in another two points. At the break, the Raiders comfortably led 46-30. They registered 25 rebounds to SU’s 12.

Shooting woes persist

Williams took a couple of dribbles down the court then pulled up for a 3-pointer. The effort fell short and was met by a chorus of groans.

Williams’ miss was SU’s 12th attempt in the opening 15 minutes and contributed to its lackluster 25 percent clip. Colgate, meanwhile, went 7-for-12 in the same amount of time.

Receiving possession in the right corner, Bell hesitated. He looked unsure whether to drive or reset the Orange’s offense. Instead, he resorted to a third option, pulling up for a 3-pointer. The shot looked rushed and came early in the shot clock, one of many ill-advised and seemingly uncomfortable shots for Syracuse.

On the opening possession in the second half, SU forced a Colgate miss and immediately found Starling in transition. The guard didn’t hesitate to set his feet and launch from the perimeter but his shot fell well short.

By the 16:18 mark, the Raiders had abandoned putting a hand up from range. Their defense backed off from the likes of Bell, Justin Taylor and Starling. Even when an uncontested Judah Mintz threatened to fire away from the top of the key, Colgate guard Braeden Smith simply watched. The result was another clank off the rim.

Though the Orange didn’t have too much trouble putting away New Hampshire and Canisius, a persistent problem was SU’s inconsistencies from 3. Against the Wildcats, Syracuse finished with a 23.8% rate from behind the arc and didn’t fare too much better versus the Golden Griffins (36.8%). Tuesday evening against Colgate, the Orange hit just 9-of-32 of their 3-point attempts.

Bombs away from Bell

Receiving a pass on the right wing, Bell put his head down and drove toward the middle. Beating his immediate defender, the SU forward took two steps before swishing a floater.

Mintz skied high, beating Records to a rebound, and pushed upcourt. Spotting an unmarked Bell in the right corner, he delivered a pass forward which Bell caught and fired with no hesitation. He made the jumper and flashed three fingers to the sky, partnered by a patented mean-mug look.

When Syracuse trailed by 20 in the second half, it was Bell who drew the home team within striking range. His career-high 25 points came off of a series of corner 3-point makes. Bell finished 6-for-14 from range and shot 47.4 percent from the field.

A comeback for the ages

It started as a 20-4 run which brought Syracuse within eight at the 9:30 mark. It ended with a Brown dunk that gave Syracuse a 74-70 lead with 32 seconds remaining.

In the final 10 minutes, a furious Orange comeback wiped away a once-24-point deficit. On one play, Mintz intercepted a pass near midcourt and raced toward the basket. He sliced through the lane, weaving through the Raiders’ bigs, for an up-and-under finish to bring Syracuse within seven. Fast forward a couple of plays and Starling recovered from a blocked shot to put the Orange within three.

But the biggest moment of the night came with the ball in Bell’s hands. Facing his defender on the right wing, the SU forward rose up to make a 3-pointer, knotting the game at 70-70.

From there, Syracuse’s defense held up and forced a string of Colgate misses. And when the Raiders pressed with time winding down, SU’s guards remained cool and collected to secure the win.

Published on November 14, 2023 at 9:46 pm

Contact Tyler: trschiff@syr.edu | @theTylerSchiff