Syracuse (18-8, 9-4 Atlantic Coast) rolled past No. 18 Louisville (18-9, 9-5) on Wednesday night in the Carrier Dome, 69-49. While it doesn’t guarantee an NCAA Tournament berth for the Orange, it’s the biggest step SU has taken toward that end goal since upsetting Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium in January. This win sets up Syracuse with momentum heading into Saturday’s rematch at the Dome with No. 1 Duke.

Here are takeaways from the Orange’s blowout win over the Cardinals.

He’s back

It’s been a weird season for Oshae Brissett. He’s settled for bad shots and missed finishes near the rim. But, save for North Carolina State, it’s gotten better of late, and in Wednesday’s first half, he dominated. He made two 3s, scored 12 points and grabbed six rebounds.

Driving left, Brissett put one off the glass and in. On a missed shot long toward the right block, he followed it up off the boards. The 3s were his first makes from beyond the arc since Jan. 26 at Virginia Tech.

With a backdown of a smaller player to start the second half and a hook shot, Brissett opened the Orange’s second-half scoring. He didn’t do much offensively afterward, but his work had already been done.

Defensive difference

Elijah Hughes forced Wednesday’s first turnover, stealing the ball from a Louisville big man. It marked the 11th-straight game he recorded at least a steal or a block. He went on to swipe another one in the first half, along with meeting the ball near the rim for a block. Along the back line of SU’s zone, Hughes is undersized at 6-foot-6. But he consistently slides into the right spots in has what Jim Boeheim has called “a good spring,” and he put it to use Wednesday.

Hughes found his shooting stroke in the second half, as he knocked down two 3s in the first eight and a half minutes. The second came off an absolute crosscourt dime from Marek Dolezaj right into his chest, knocking it right through.

Then, with under-8 minutes to play, Hughes caught in the left corner, rose up and drained another 3. He stared at the basket for two seconds after the make, and Louisville used a timeout with SU up 18. That was the dagger.

Setting up 3s

Tyus Battle worked the majority of Wednesday’s game in a point guard role with Frank Howard on the bench. And not only did he set up his teammates; he set them up from beyond the arc.

Time and again, Battle drove before kicking to the perimeter. Louisville slid over to help and an SU player was open. On Battle’s first seven assists, Syracuse hit 3-pointers. The sixth — the kick to Hughes above — prompted a standing ovation and a Louisville timeout. The seventh led to a Buddy Boeheim 3 and prompted the walk-ons subbing in.

While Battle finished with 11 points, he contributed to an additional 21 points on his seven 3-pointer assists.

Published on February 20, 2019 at 8:55 pm

Contact Billy: wmheyen@syr.edu | @Wheyen3