The first time Syracuse and Notre Dame met this season, it was Jesse Edwards who took over, registering a double-double with 22 points. The Orange survived that earlier contest in South Bend, 62-61.
Both teams came out swinging from the tip, particularly Benny Williams, who started the scoring off for Syracuse with a three pointer. The test for Notre Dame all game long was simply this: how are they going to stop Jesse Edwards?
Throughout the first half, Notre Dame switched their coverage around on the 6’11’’ Senior. Cormac Ryan, Nate Laszewski, and Ven-Allen Lubin were each assigned the task and held him to eight points, yet eight rebounds splitting evenly amongst offensive and defensive.
The main headline of the first twenty minutes was how Notre Dame responded to each offensive possession and basket from Syracuse. Whether it was Maliq Brown making an immediate impact off of the bench or trifectas from Chris Bell, the first half points leader for the Orange, or Joe Girard, the Irish provided the majority of the half with “swift replies”, not letting any momentum stay with The Orange.
The second half began like the first, with Syracuse generating some offensive bursts and Notre Dame quieting The Orange fans with a dagger, usually a trifecta from either Marcus Hammond or another member of the Irish. It seemed that’s where the majority of their success came from this evening.
Momentum began to change its color from gold and blue to orange and blue just past the midway point of the second half when Syracuse went on a 7-0 run, highlighted with influential shots from Chris Bell and Justin Taylor. As time continued to tick away, Syracuse’s game plan fell into place and they began to run away with the lead. This saw Notre Dame now struggle from beyond the arch and allow one of their leaders, Cormac Ryan, to get into foul trouble. When the clock hit zero, it was the Orange who found themselves victors with a 78-73 win, their second against Notre Dame this season.
Although it was Chris Bell who led the way for the Orange tonight with his team leading 17 points, the main standout for me was Maliq Brown and his 15 points off of the bench. It seemed as if when Coach Boeheim needed a spark or a jolt of energy in the form of a big play, it was Brown who would follow that up with either a dunk or a layup off a feed from Jesse Edwards. Head Coach Jim Boeheim had some encouraging words regarding the freshman’s standout performance this evening.
“He hangs around the basket and when they’re worried about Jesse, Maliq gets there and finishes,” Boeheim said. “He’s a really good player and he’s getting better.”
The Orange hit the road and will take on the #16 Miami Hurricanes Monday. Tip off is set for 7:00 p.m.