Syracuse Basketball Gets Demolished By Duke: 3 Takeaways

A packed Loud House and a promising first 10 minutes weren’t enough to keep Syracuse basketball hanging around with Duke.

Syracuse Basketball lost 83 to 54 in a game that got out of hand after the slow start.

Takeaway #1: The Maine Event

23,313 fans were in attendance for #2 Duke vs. Syracuse. It was the highest attendance in college basketball this season. All there for the Maine Event: Cooper Flagg. But the Duke freshman who averages 20 points a game only had 11 points on 7 shots.

“He’s great with it, I’m not great with it,” said Scheyer. “I always want him to get more shots”.

Flagg is a great passer, but he only had two assists on the night. Scheyer noted that a lot of the passes tonight led to an extra pass for a bucket. The Blue Devils distribution was on full display, with five Duke players in double figures. They’ve won 16 straight, and 12 straight conference games. They’re also undefeated on the road. The Blue Devils are bound for a 1 seed in March as one of the country’s best teams.

Takeaway #2: McLeod coverage 

Syracuse decided to play some 2-3 zone on defense after Duke started 1/6 from three. Duke then came out and hit three straight threes, with McLeod as the anchor of the defense. The Florida State transfer had only played in seven games this season, maxing out at two points. He had ten points on the night in a solid offensive showing.

“Our guys came out in the first 14 minutes and competed,” said Autry. “Then I made the decision to go to the zone, and they rattled off nine… I thought that created that distance where we could never get our footing back”.

McLeod played more minutes (22) than Eddie Lampkin Jr. (18). Lampkin finished with no assists and two points.

Takeaway #3: Free throw disparity

Syracuse only had one free throw attempt, that they missed, through roughly 90% of the contest. They ended making two of their four attempts. Duke shot 19 free throws, making 14 of them.

“I thought we settled for some,” said Autry. “And when we did get in there we didn’t finish. A lot of it had to do with their (Duke) defense”.

Syracuse needed to win the free throw battle to get the win. But Duke continually found a way to get to the line, and lock up the Orange in the paint. It was one of the many factors that led to Duke’s route of ‘Cuse.

Syracuse needs to beat Boston College next game, or they’ll be in real danger of missing the ACC Tournament.

Next up for Syracuse basketball (10-13, 4-8): vs Boston College (10-11, 2-9) – Feb. 8 at 3:15 p.m. EST

Next up for Duke (20-2, 12-0): at Clemson (18-5, 10-2) – Jan. 28 at 6:30 p.m. EST