In Syracuse’s home-opener against Rhode Island on Nov. 11, freshman Gabby Cooper threw up 18 3-pointers.

She made just four.

In the Orange’s next game, Nov. 14 in the Carrier Dome against Siena, Cooper again relentlessly heaved shots from beyond the arc, this time attempting 14 3-pointers.

She made three.

After the Rhode Island game, SU head coach Quentin Hillsman was asked whether Cooper needed to relax with the 3-pointers. He said he almost took her out a few times for not shooting enough. In his offense, Hillsman said, open shots need to be taken.

“That was one of the more difficult things to adjust to,” Cooper said. “Sometimes you don’t feel ready to shoot.”

Shooting just 23.6 percent from the 3-point line in the first seven games of her freshman campaign, Cooper has experienced the tough love that comes with running as a guard in Hillsman’s deep-ball offense. She’s shot at least 10 3-pointers in four of SU’s (4-3) games this season but has made only 17 of her 72 attempts.

When Syracuse recruited Cooper, she said she expected to receive significant minutes on the court. But after playing 194 minutes already this season, the third highest total on the team, even Cooper admits that she didn’t expect to be playing this much, and she didn’t expect to be shooting nearly as many 3s.

Hillsman said at the beginning of the season that the Orange would have to rely on 3-pointers to survive this season. After the team’s national championship appearance last year — a by-product of its heavy reliance and success with 3-pointers — Hillsman said the team “has no other choice” than to live or die from 3-point range.

But after losing guard Brianna Butler following last season, the SU staff knew it needed a third guard to complement Alexis Peterson and Brittney Sykes. That’s where Cooper came in.

“(Cooper) can make shots, she’s athletic enough and she’s smart enough,” assistant coach Tammi Reiss said. “The biggest thing was, could she pick the schemes up quick enough to learn everything to play? Gabby’s a very smart player. “

With Cooper tasked to replace Butler’s stellar numbers from the 3-point line, this reliance on 3s has been rough for SU in the early part of the year. Syracuse has lost three of its last four games and dropped nine spots to No. 20 from No. 11 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll.

In SU’s 62-61 loss at Drexel last Monday, the Orange shot just 28 percent from 3-point range, and it hasn’t shot above 34 percent since Nov. 11.

Still, Hillsman said, when players such as Cooper are on the court shooting 3-pointers, even if the shooters don’t make every shot, it spreads out the floor and opens up the middle for inside players like center Briana Day.

“Either they come and guard me and give the lane to (Peterson) and (Sykes), or they don’t guard me and I pull up and shoot it,” Cooper said.

The 5-foot-10 Cooper said playing in Hillsman’s offense has taught her that if she isn’t ready to shoot, it’s her fault that she’s missing open looks on the basket. She said she has to get ready to shoot all of the time if she wants the number of looks from beyond the arc that Hillsman asks for.

And even though Cooper’s numbers aren’t where she would like them to be right now, she’s learning that the more open looks, the better. The makes could come as the season goes on.

“She’s doing well, she’s taking her shots when she has them and being aggressive for us,” Hillsman said. “We have to give her a lot of credit, she’s a freshman, she’s a baby playing in a huge environment.”

Published on November 29, 2016 at 10:24 pm

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