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Syracuse opened its season with an exhibition game against Division II Pace University, a contest that ended in a straightforward 79-60 win for SU. Head coach Jim Boeheim, now in his 46th season, opened with a starting lineup that featured his two sons, Jimmy and Buddy Boeheim, alongside point guard Joe Girard III, center Jesse Edwards and Villanova transfer and forward Cole Swider. 

SU’s rotation also featured freshman Benny Williams, center Frank Anselem and Marquette transfer Symir Torrence, among others. 

Here are some observations from the Orange’s 19-point victory on Wednesday night in the Carrier Dome: 

Cole Swider looked good in his first action.

At halftime, Swider led the Orange with 11 points. He finished 8-of-10 from the field with a team-high 21 points. 

“He picks things up, he understands what we’re doing, and he can shoot,” Boeheim said after the win. “And he can shoot, and he can shoot, and he can shoot.”

Swider nailed back-to-back 3-pointers from near identical spots at the top of the arc moments after Buddy airballed his own attempt from beyond the arc. Moments later, Girard grabbed a rebound off the front rim and flipped the court quickly, carrying the ball down the floor. He found Swider in that same spot, and the Villanova transfer who Boeheim called “a great shooter” easily could’ve pulled from deep again, but instead played unselfishly. Swider found Buddy, even more wide-open in the left corner, and Buddy sank the 3-pointer.

Swider’s movement near the inside the arc earned him multiple straightforward layups. On one, Buddy drew a double-team and then picked out a pass across the key for Swider, who converted the mid-range jumper.

Swider scored his first points on a 3-pointer in transition, and he sank another shot from deep later in the game over a defender. He finished with a team-high efficiency rating of 27.0.

Bourama Sidibe’s absence makes room for Jesse Edwards, Frank Anselem.

An hour before SU’s matchup against Pace, Stadium’s Jeff Goodman reported that SU center Bourama Sidibe would miss about four weeks with an injury. An SU Athletics spokesperson confirmed that Sidibe wouldn’t dress for Wednesday’s game against Pace and that the timeline for his injury was expected to be about a month. 

Boeheim already indicated that Edwards would start at SU’s media day on Oct. 22, explaining that the center’s growth has been significant and he and Anselem are “light-years ahead of where they were last year.” 

“This is a good time for Jesse and Frank to get some opportunities,” Boeheim said. “It’s a good opportunity for them to get going and do some things.”

Wednesday, fans got a first glimpse of that growth as Edwards grabbed a defensive rebound, went down to the other end of the floor and received a pass from Girard. Edwards notched SU’s first points of the evening before he was fouled. He finished multiple alley-oop chances throughout the game, and continuously ran the court and served as an option for easy layups. On one early second half play, he took a feed from Jimmy for a routine lay-up, got back on defense and blocked the ensuing setters’ shot. Edwards finished with 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting with five total rebounds, four blocks and two steals.

Anselem played the remaining 17 minutes when Edwards wasn’t on the court, finishing with five rebounds and two points. Anselem did well to double-team a Pace ball-carrier during the first half and force a turnover alongside Symir Torrence. The center duplicated that defensive play moments later when he and Swider doubled the shooter and Swider blocked the shot.

Despite what seems like an improvement at center with Anselem and Edwards, SU was still slightly outrebounded 12-10 on the offensive glass by a Division II team.

An atrocious performance at the free throw line. 

SU finished 8-of-21 from the charity stripe, the first time the Orange shot under 50% since Nov. 6, 2019 in their season-opener against Virginia. Jimmy finished 3-of-7 from the line, something he — and the Orange — need to build on as the season progresses. Swider finished 80% from the field, more than twice as good as SU’s team free throw shooting clip. 

“We’re a much better free throw shooting team than we showed tonight,” Boeheim said after the game. “So that’s an area that I think we will be a lot better.”

“You miss 13 free throws, you’re in a different game,” Boeheim said later. “You got to make those free throws. It’s just something you got to do, and we will.”

The Orange — particularly Joe Girard — show good court vision. 

Syracuse finished with 26 assists on 30 baskets, more assists than it recorded all of last season and in 2019-20. “That’s a lot. That’s pretty good,” Boeheim said. “We did a good job of being patient.”

Girard made a nice cut at the top of the arc midway through the first half, and he found Symir Torrence in the paint underneath. Torrence set up Edwards for an alley-oop and dunk, and SU showed good court vision — albeit against a Division II team — repeatedly on Wednesday.

Girard drove in the lane later in the half and dumped it off to Edwards for an alley-oop later. He flipped the floor by driving quickly after grabbing a rebound off the front rim too, dishing to Buddy for a wide-open 3 in the corner. Girard led the Orange with six assists.

“He’s not really looking to shoot it much,” Boeheim said. “He’s taking shots when they’re there, but he’s making plays, which a point guard does.”

Benny Williams’ ‘freshman plays.’

Williams was active with seven points and team-high nine rebounds, but he made some “freshman plays,” Boeheim said. The coach cited Williams’ flat jump shot as something that’s a work in progress. 

“He’s a creative player. He can make passes, he really can get the ball … and rebound the ball,” Boeheim said. “He’s going to be really good, it’s just going to take some patience and some time.”

Buddy Boeheim’s knock.

Buddy scored three 3-pointers during the first half, but he walked back to the locker room alongside SU trainer Brad Pike with his left shoe off early in the second frame. He returned a few minutes later with a smile on his face — and both shoes on — but did not return to the court after that. 

Boeheim said Buddy “should be fine, from everything I’ve seen” and that his son just had a sprained ankle. Buddy could’ve returned, but the staff elected to hold him out to receive treatment, Boeheim added.

“Buddy getting hurt puts the pressure on everyone else to pick it up,” Boeheim said. “And I thought they really did a good job.”

Published on October 27, 2021 at 10:18 pm

Contact Roshan: [email protected] | @Roshan_f16