1. Syracuse Wasn’t Too Upset After the Loss
At the post-game press conference, Jim Boeheim [9] and Dion Waiters [10] made it clear - the goal is to win the NCAA Tournament. For them, the Big East Tournament is pretty much meaningless. It’s not to say that the Orange didn’t put there best foot forward, but I don’t think they played with the same urgency that you’ll see in the NCAA tourney. SU didn’t really have anything to gain or lose except momentum. The Orange will still be a No. 1 seed come Selection Sunday. In effect, they didn’t seem too phased by the loss.
2. Half-court Offense Was Once Again Stagnant
Cincinnati stopped Syracuse from running, forcing the Orange to play a slower paced game. SU is at its best in the open floor and forcing turnovers, but Syracuse was unable to do that. They were forced into a half-court game against an aggressive zone that the Orange isn’t used to attacking. They settled for threes and quick shots instead of looking into the high-post and moving without the ball. To win in the NCAA tournament, SU needs to be more efficient in the half-court because teams know how much much the Orange struggle in it.
3. Waiters Is the Closer
Many questioned who the closer or go-to player was for Syracuse. Well, Boeheim has shown that he trusts Waiters and will put the ball in his hands with the game on the line. Waiters is one of the few Orange players who is dynamic at creating for himself and for others. When the game is on the line, it will be Dion Waiters with the ball in his hands.
