When Elijah Hughes threw a lob to Tyus Battle midway through Saturday’s second half, the pass was slightly off, but Battle still scored. Boston College used its second timeout in as many minutes. It was one of the final moments as Syracuse (17-7, 8-3 Atlantic Coast) didn’t get off to a roaring start against Boston College (11-11, 2-8), but pulled away and held off a late rally to win, 67-56.

Here are some takeaways from the game.

Blistering Buddy

Since ACC play began, Buddy Boeheim has been a different shooter from 3-point range. He entered Saturday as a 17-for-39 shooter from deep against conference opposition, and that carried over into the first half against BC. Three times, Buddy was open, and three times, he knocked it down.

His first shot of the second half was from the top of the key and fell as well. It contributed to Syracuse taking a double-digit lead and pulling away. That shot gave him 14 points, a new career-high.

Clipped wings

The Eagles couldn’t make any shots in the first half. Syracuse closed out perimeter shooters and held BC to 1-of-9 from deep. There wasn’t much more success inside, as Paschal Chukwu blocked two shots and Hughes soared to send another shot away.

SU’s defense prevented the type of start that BC had on the road against the Orange, when Boston College broke out to an early 15-6 lead. Part of it on Saturday was simply Jordan Chatman missing 3s: He scored 21 points in the first meeting, but made only one of his first eight shots in the rematch.

It didn’t get better for the Eagles in the second half. As Buddy kept hitting shots, the Eagles kept missing. But then a late run: 14-0 for BC late in the second half made it a close game. But it came too late.

Interior presence

SU head coach Jim Boeheim has complained that Syracuse needs more from its centers. Oshae Brissett keeps trying inside. He double-doubled for a third-straight game on Saturday. Save for one or two outside jumpers, he attacked the rim and crashed the glass at both ends. Brissett got to his right hand whenever he wanted, getting himself to the foul line multiple times by gaining an edge to his strong side.

Brissett finished with 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Second-half Battle

When Syracuse played at Boston College on Jan. 30, Battle scored 21 points in the second half to finish with 31. Saturday, Battle scored 15 points in the second half to finish with 21 for the game.

He contributed his own 6-0 run midway through the second half. It started with a breakaway righty slam, which drew a BC timeout. Then, he went coast-to-coast again for a reverse layup. Finally, Hughes threw that lob to Battle to draw another Eagles timeout. Battle showed, again, that when Syracuse needs a run, he’s got it in him.

Published on February 9, 2019 at 4:26 pm

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