It had been 66 minutes of game time since Trevor Cooney’s last 3-pointer, and he was on the court for 64 of them.

The junior’s shooting draught went from 3:08 left in the second half of Syracuse’s overtime win over Wake Forest on Jan. 13, through the Orange’s double-digit loss to Clemson on Saturday and to the 1:40 mark of SU’s 69-61 win over Boston College on Tuesday night.

That’s when he sized up Eagles guard Olivier Hanlan on the right wing, took one dribble to his left and stroked a 3 off the back rim and through the bottom of the net.

And while the 3 buried Cooney’s recent struggles, it also accented how handcuffing his struggles can be.

“They just keep a guy with him the whole time, and he’s seen that before,” SU head coach Jim Boeheim said of what teams are doing to slow Cooney down. “St. John’s did the best job of it this year and Clemson, those are the two teams that have done the best job.

“They just didn’t leave him to help or do anything. Away (from the ball) on defense they just stay with him the whole time.”

It’s no coincidence that Clemson and St. John’s are two of Syracuse’s five losses, as Cooney is shooting 26 percent from deep in losses and 38 percent from 3 all season long. The Orange (14-5, 5-1 Atlantic Coast) hosts Miami (12-5, 2-2) at 4 p.m. on Saturday, and Cooney’s production continues to hinge on creating space with a diverse offensive game.

“He’s a much more complete player when he’s putting the ball on the floor,” SU forward Michael Gbinije said after beating the Demon Deacons on Jan. 13. “Whenever he can find other ways to get looks, it’s only going to make him look from 3 better.”

Cooney wasn’t able to mix things up against Clemson, though, and it showed in his final stat line.

Tigers guard Rod Hall blanketed Cooney around screens, away from the ball and whenever Cooney had it. The shooting guard had limited opportunities to put it on the floor and change his vantage point.

The upped defensive pressure turned him into a one-dimensional shooter relying on contested looks. The result was a five-point game in which he shot 0-for-7 from the field and 0-for-5 from beyond the arc.

“I was frustrated after Clemson, sure I was,” Cooney said after SU beat BC. “But I had to find other ways to score and help the team. Get to the foul line and defend, stuff like that.”

At the end of the Clemson game, as the Orange clung to a half-hearted comeback, Cooney forced his way into the creases of the Tigers’ defense and shot seven free throws. Against the Eagles, he looked to dribble first in Syracuse’s half-court offense and eventually freed himself up for five clean looks from 3, two of which went in.

Miami is 11th out of 15 ACC teams in 3-point defense — with opponents shooting an average of 33 percent against them — but Cooney will still be a main focus of the Hurricanes’ defense.

After senior forward Rakeem Christmas, the SU offense has gone as Cooney has gone this season. The shooting guard has scored under 10 points in three of the Orange’s five losses, and in just three of the team’s 15 wins.

It’s a trend that has carried over from last season and promises to continue, starting with a pivotal conference matchup with the Hurricanes this weekend.

“You can see it in his play and with his numbers,” Syracuse point guard Kaleb Joseph said after SU beat Wake Forest. “If he’s taking more shots inside he’s bound to get more outside looks. That’s just Trevor. And we need Trevor for just about everything we do.”

Published on January 22, 2015 at 12:12 am

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