SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Syracuse came into this matchup with Duke on a five-game win streak and looked to keep the momentum going heading into the final week of the regular season. Even though the Blue Devils turned the ball over 27 times, the Orange were out-rebounded 52-25 and lost 58-45.
Syracuse and Duke traded baskets through the opening ten minutes of play. The Orange gave up the first four points of the contest, but they fought back to bring their deficit to within three by the end of the quarter. Dyaisha Fair led the team in scoring, but four different players got involved offensively.
The Orange saw the game slip out of their hands in the second quarter as the Blue Devils came out hot on a 10-4 run that lasted until the media timeout. After the break, Duke found another gear and scored 11 of the final 13 points in the first half that sent Coach Legette-Jack storming into the locker room. Her team was not only losing by 18, but it was losing the rebound battle by 19.
“The rebounding thing to me is the easiest thing in the world,” said Coach Jack. “Rebounding is toughness, and credit to Kara Lawson and her team. They out-toughed us today.”
Syracuse came back to life in the third quarter as it started the second half on a 9-3 run through the first three-and-a-half minutes of play thanks to Fair scoring seven of the nine while Georgia Woolley knocked in two foul shots. Over the final six minutes of the frame, it quickly became a defensive battle as the offenses slowed down.
The defensive stalemate carried over into the fourth quarter as the first five minutes saw just 10 points combined between the two teams as the visitors scoring seven of the 10. Syracuse just could not muster any offense as shots continued to be blocked or bounce out off the rim, and the inability to rebound quickly became an eyesore. Fair added seven more points to finish the night with a total of 22 while Woolley hit a three, and Sophie Burrows added a pair of free throws.
While the Orange fought all 40 minutes, it was an uphill battle for much of the game. They last had the lead with just over two minutes to go in the first quarter and tried to play catch up the final 32 minutes as the Blue Devils held on for the win.
“Today required us to dig deep into our discipline and our focus and our fight,” said Coach Jack. “We didn’t do that, and when you get beat 52-25 on the boards, the fight wasn’t working. I take full responsibility for that, and we will get better.”
Syracuse is back in action Sunday for the final home game of the season when it hosts Pitt in an ACC matchup. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.