Midway through the second quarter, a 7-0 Panthers run brought Syracuse’s lead down to 10. The Orange hadn’t scored in more than two minutes, so they reverted to what had allowed them to build their lead: simple ball movement and staying in front of their man.

As the shot clock wound down with just over two minutes remaining, Kiara Lewis dribbled back-and-forth at the top of the key surrounded by three Panther defenders. She swung it to Digna Strautmane, who then calmly threw it to Whisper Fisher in the paint. The buzzer sounded a split-second after the ball left Fisher’s fingertips and dropped in. On the other end, SU’s bench cheered as Fisher emphatically stuffed Amber Brown’s layup attempt.

Syracuse (14-11, 8-6 Atlantic Coast) had reasserted its dominance and began to rebuild their lead on the way to a 71-53 win over ACC bottom-dweller Pittsburgh (4-21, 1-13) on Sunday in the Carrier Dome. All afternoon, Syracuse had uncontested shots, easy steals, blocks and forced turnovers. The gap between the Orange and Pittsburgh was as substantial as the conference standings indicated. Syracuse’s fourth-straight win was expected — the Panthers have one win in their last 18 contests — but also one it needed to bolster its chances at an NCAA tournament bid.

“On any day, you can be beaten,” head coach Quentin Hillsman said. “We never go into any game thinking we’re going to show up and just win the game. We knew we had to play with energy, we knew we had to execute. And we did.”

As of Feb. 11, ESPN’s Charlie Creme didn’t have SU in his projected field for the NCAA tournament, or even on the bubble. The Orange have since added two wins to their win streak and sit with a similar record to bubble teams. With four games remaining — two against teams Syracuse has already beaten this season — the Orange have a chance to creep back into the 64-team field, something that seemed impossible after their 57-41 loss to Virginia on Feb. 2.

“We’ve always felt that way, we always felt like we’re an NCAA tournament-caliber team,” Hillsman said. “We have to keep winning games to get into the tournament, so that’s our goal.”

Early in Sunday’s game, it was clear SU would cruise. The Orange picked off weak passes on each of Pittsburgh’s first two possessions. Despite missing its first four shots, Syracuse snagged three offensive rebounds in the first minute of the game.

All it took on offense for SU to get an open or lightly contested shot was quick ball movement. After starting 0-for-5, the Orange finished the first quarter shooting 9-for-18, including several wide-open 3s for Lewis and Teisha Hyman. Six different Syracuse players scored in its highest-scoring first quarter (24 points) since Jan. 2 against then-No. 8 Florida State.

“We were just sharing the ball and knocking down open shots,” Lewis said. “That’s something we’ve been doing in our four-game win streak, and that’s why we’re able to spread the lead out a little bit more.”

On the Panthers’ first possession of the second quarter, Strautmane stuffed Dayshanette Harris. After a SU turnover, Harris bricked an open 3. Emy Hayford got an offensive rebound and missed a layup attempt. An offensive foul moments later handed the ball right back to the Orange. Pittsburgh couldn’t muster any rhythm on offense — its possessions were often cut short by airballs, travels and 3-second violations. Syracuse tallied five blocks in the first half while turning nine Panther turnovers into 11 points.

Syracuse’s defense caused the Panthers to turn the ball over 17 times and shoot 36.4% from the field. Elizabeth Billman | Asst. Photo Editor

In the third quarter, SU extended its advantage from 14 to 24. Hillsman had the Orange run their full-court press after every Pittsburgh made bucket despite holding a 20-plus point lead. Elemy Colomé and Strautmane dove and fought for loose balls, spurring spirited reactions from the SU bench. The Orange even forced a violation for 10 seconds in the backcourt late in the quarter.

“I think that we work on our zone so much that it’s kind of like second nature to everybody,” Emily Engstler said. “Coach Q always tells us he’s never worried about us knowing the mechanics of our zone, our plays, but more how much energy we bring.”

Hillsman kept SU’s starters and usual bench players in for most of the fourth quarter. Graduate transfers Colomé, Fisher and Brooke Alexander — who have watched from the sidelines for much of the season but played in short spurts recently — all got in the game in the final period.

The final five minutes were the worst stretch of the game for the Orange, but it didn’t matter. The Panthers went on 10-0 run to narrow SU’s deficit to 13, but six straight points from the home team officially buried the game. By then, Hillsman could afford to give Lewis, Engstler and others rare time on the bench as the bench players closed out another double-digit SU victory.

When Syracuse scored 41 points in a loss to Virginia two weeks ago and dropped below .500, it looked to be nowhere near an NCAA tournament bid. All season, Hillsman has said the Orange were capable of ringing off a four- or five-game win streak, but it never proved that it could. Until now.

The wins have shot the Orange up the conference standings and back into consideration for an at-large bid. But Hillsman has believed all along, and he will until the Orange’s fate is decided on the ESPN Selection Special exactly one month from Saturday.

“We never lost our confidence, I know I never lost confidence in our players,” Hillsman said. “Normally this time of year, as long as you’re healthy you start to play well. That’s what we’re doing, we’re healthy and our kids are playing with some enthusiasm.”

Published on February 16, 2020 at 3:09 pm

Contact David: [email protected]