With Rakeem Christmas battling foul trouble, the Orange's secondary scoring options led the team to a rebound win.
For 17 minutes of Syracuse’s game against Boston College, Orange center Rakeem Christmas found himself in an unfamiliar place: the SU bench.
Syracuse’s leading scorer couldn’t escape foul trouble on Tuesday night, but his teammates stepped up in his absence. Four other Orange players scored in double figures to lead the Orange (14-5, 5-1 Atlantic Coast) to a 69-61 victory over the Eagles (8-9, 0-5 Atlantic Coast).
The senior poured in a career-high 35 points as the Orange continued its hot start in conference play.
With freshman forward Chris McCullough now sidelined for the rest of the season, Syracuse will need to move forward without half of its potent one-two punch inside the paint.
But on Tuesday night against Wake Forest, the other half proved he’s capable of delivering knockout blows all by himself.
The senior made three shots from beyond the arc in the final minutes to send the Red Storm to a monumental win.
With just under five minutes remaining and his team trailing Syracuse by three points, St. John’s guard Phil Greene IV decided he was going to shoot the ball under any circumstance.
He simply knew he was going to make a big shot, and he didn’t disappoint when it came time to prove his gut feeling correct.
The senior buried three shots from beyond the arc and scored 13 points down the stretch to lead the Red Storm to an impressive 69-57 victory over the Orange in front of 24,884 fans in the Carrier Dome on Saturday afternoon.
An explosive fast-break attack helps the Orange overcome another slow shooting performance.
When the shots simply weren’t falling, No. 23 Syracuse turned to its signature 2-3 zone for the spark it needed in a 89-42 thumping of Kennesaw State Friday night at the Carrier Dome.
With only four buckets in 18 attempts from the field, SU struggled to get its wheels turning in the first 10 minutes, allowing the Owls to stick around early.
But as turnover followed turnover, a stout Orange defense paved the way for numerous fast-break opportunities that, before long, built a huge lead and got the offense humming on all cylinders.