Syracuse (11-7, 1-4 Atlantic Coast) picked up its first conference win of the season with a 62-40 drubbing of lowly Boston College (7-9, 0-3) on Wednesday night in the Carrier Dome. Here are three quick observations from the Orange’s blowout win.

Back on Track

Michael Gbinije had struggled to find himself at the outset of conference play. He scored a season-low 10 points against Miami, which he matched against then-No. 6 North Carolina. Boston College provided a reprieve for the starting point guard. He had 12 in the first half alone and had gotten to the basket with ease on two occasions.

On the first play of the game, Syracuse got possession and he cut to the left side of the basket and laid it in with his right hand.

He wasn’t as much of a factor in the second half. But his one bucket looked as easy as the rest, a seemingly uncontested run to the hoop to keep the wheels moving in the onslaught. He scored 14 points total.

O-Zone

Syracuse held Boston College scoreless for a stretch of seven minutes and 28 seconds in the first half and it propelled a 21-2 run that separated the Orange for good.

When Boston College’s Darryl Hicks found himself open for a 3-pointer on the left wing, he double-clutched before misfiring.

When the Eagles did score, it took an average of 24 seconds, which served as a reflection of how difficult the makes were to find. The Eagles went on a 9-0 run to cut the Syracuse lead to seven in the second half, but two baskets in the paint from Dajuan Coleman brought the Orange back on track, as the lead ballooned to as many as 25.

What does it mean?

Boston College is not only one of the worst teams in the ACC, it’s arguably the worst power-conference team in college basketball. Dennis Clifford, the 7-foot center, was all around the rim but had no offensive ability. He missed several layups en route to an 0-for-4 night. All night, the BC offense let the shot clock get down to the final seconds before firing up a contested jumper.

The Eagles are a team that lost to UC Irvine and Santa Clara by a combined 30 points and looked the part. SU, a team normally challenged offensively on the interior, outscored BC in the paint, 34-14. The Eagles, a team that lives by 3, died by it on Wednesday shooting just 6-of-26 from behind the arc.

Getting a win for Syracuse improves the conference record, but pretty much every other win on the schedule is better.

Published on January 13, 2016 at 9:06 pm