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Syracuse was sitting pretty after one quarter. The Orange led UAlbany 21-11, shooting 8-for-14 (57.1%) from the field and 2-for-4 on 3-pointers.

According to head coach Felisha Legette-Jack, Syracuse emphasized defending at practice on Tuesday. As a result, SU allowed its fewest first-quarter points all season.

“We gotta defend our own dreams. We gotta defend our own university. We gotta defend our own sisterhood,” Legette-Jack said Tuesday.

Entering Wednesday’s contest, Syracuse outscored its opponent in all of its first quarters. However, it had been outscored in the second quarter of its previous losses. After jumping out to a 22-14 lead after one quarter, the Orange were eclipsed 25-14 in the second quarter in their loss to Saint Joseph’s on Nov. 10. In its defeat to then-No. 11 Maryland on Nov. 13, SU led 20-14 after one quarter before getting trounced 28-11 in the second quarter.

The trend plagued Syracuse (2-3, 0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) again Wednesday in its 73-70 loss to UAlbany (4-0, 0-0 America East). SU came out of the gate strong in the first quarter but was outscored 19-10 in the second, going on a scoring drought for more than five and a half minutes. In all five games this season, the Orange have been outscored by a combined 101-73 in the second quarter.

“Having the lead doesn’t mean that we won the game,” center Izabel Varejão said postgame. “I think it has been a thing lately. First quarter, we were up 10 and then (in the) second quarter, (the lead) goes down. Whoever comes in, whoever’s on the court at that moment has to keep that in mind that the game is not won (after one quarter).”

Guard Georgia Woolley said Syracuse needs to watch the film to fully assess how UAlbany gained control in the second quarter. Woolley exploded for 10 first-quarter points but only scored two in the second quarter.

The Orange started the second quarter with three bench players on the floor: Angelica Velez, Saniaa Wilson and Keira Scott. Woolley was off the court as was Varejão, who pitched in with 15 points and six rebounds Wednesday.

The Great Danes got on the scoreboard first, with a Gabriela Falcão floater dropping. SU answered with a turnaround layup by Wilson. But on the next possession, UAlbany got a mismatch with guard Jessica Tomasetti up against Syracuse forward Kyra Wood. Tomasetti gained separation before passing to Kaci Donovan for an open jumper after Velez had lost her assignment.

Legette-Jack mentioned postgame Syracuse is still trying to figure out the optimal substitution patterns and what lineups work well together. She wants to see more production from her bench.

“We have a good group that starts us off, but they are going to have to get breaks and our bench has to help us,” Legette-Jack said. “I got to do a better job and figure out who to sub and at what time.”

On SU’s next possession, Scott missed a contested baseline pull-up. The Orange were slow to recover on defense, forcing Sophie Burrows to step to UAlbany’s Meghan Huerter on the outside. Huerter passed to Tomasetti in the paint, the space Burrows vacated, for an easy layup. UAlbany outscored SU 7-2 a minute into the second quarter.

Syracuse rolled out its starting lineup in response, but it still couldn’t score or string together stops. Burrows and Varejão clanged open 3-pointers off the rim. On the other side, UAlbany’s leading scorer Kayla Cooper — who averaged 21 points per game in the Great Danes’ first three games — hit a jumper from the free-throw line, nudging UAlbany within one point at 23-22 and pushing its run to 9-0.

Finally, SU ended its scoring drought when Journey Thompson converted on a layup at the 3:56 mark. Prior to that, Syracuse’s last points came 30 seconds into the quarter.

UAlbany immediately responded. Cooper was left unmarked in the paint and made Syracuse pay. Woolley drove inside and netted a layup. Then UAlbany leveled the score at 27-27 on a Martina Borrellas 3.

Turnovers also marred SU’s second quarter. The Orange turned the ball over four times — two travels, one charge and an errant pass. Legette-Jack called it “sloppy play,” and said that SU “didn’t respect the ball enough.”

Legette-Jack noted she tinkered with her substitutions. Freshman guard Olivia Schmitt made the most of her time on the court, playing a season-high 17 minutes. With two minutes left in the half, Schmitt pounced on a UAlbany inbounds pass, stealing possession and driving to make a layup to give SU a 29-27 lead. Schmitt took a step-back 3 on Syracuse’s next possession that rattled the rim but didn’t fall.

To close the half, it was Schmitt conducting SU’s offense. She called for a pick-and-roll, gaining separation from a Varejão screen before threading a bounce pass between two Great Danes defenders to find Varejão cutting to the hoop for the easy 2.

Legette-Jack said Schmitt “played tough,” pushed the pace and took chances to “take it to (UAlbany’s) chest.”

But the second quarter ended with a trip to the free-throw line for Donovan with 1.8 seconds left. Though Donovan split the pair, the damage had been done for Syracuse. It went from sitting on a double-digit cushion after one quarter to leading by just one at halftime.

“It’s just playing hard, and we got to get better at that. That’s a non-negotiable thing,” Woolley said.

Published on November 21, 2024 at 12:11 am

Contact Nicholas: njalumka@syr.edu