SU dominates Le Moyne, 89-52

By Zachary Levine

CitrusTV Basketball Reporter

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – It was another typical preseason tune-up for No. 16 Syracuse, as they defeated inner-city rival LeMoyne by the final score of 89-52.

For the Orange, junior transfer Elijah Hughes led the way with 21 points, shooting 2-3 from beyond the arc, and racking up 28 minutes of playing time. Oshae Bissett was also dominant for SU, scoring 14 and tallying up three steals while on the court for 22 minutes.

The Orange started out sloppy, not able to get into a solid rhythm until halfway through the first half. LeMoyne, on the other hand, came flying out of the gate, jumping out to a 9-2 lead early on.

“Just like everybody else in the country, there’s a long way to go. We’ve got a lot to do,” said Syracuse Head Coach Jim Boeheim.

Boeheim brought light to the missing point guards on the team, Howard Washington, Frank Howard, and Jalen Carey, who was injured during the Orange vs. White scrimmage back on October 12.

“We’ve done a lot more good than bad, and considering we don’t have the point guards, we really played two exceptional games. We didn’t win by overpowering them, they out-rebounded us, he said.”

After the sloppy start, SU bounced back quickly, as Paschal Chukwu took to the court and ultimately dropped eight points and tallied four rebounds on the night. By the time the game clock reached 4:00 in the first, SU was in the drivers’ seat, up sixteen after an 8-0 run on the Dolphins.

SU headed for the locker room with a commanding 50-30 lead. Any result other than this would have come as a shock to the Orange faithful, who made up only about half of the fans in the Dome, due to Le Moyne’s proximity.

The second half became a showcase of SU’s depth, with Hughes, Chukwu, Battle, and Buddy Boeheim all at the center of it. SU outscored Le Moyne 39 to 22 in that half, as Coach Boeheim let some of his younger talent take the court in the final minutes.

“I’m really excited for myself, but I’m more excited for the new guys, getting a little taste of what the crowd’s going to be like,” forward Oshae Brissett said after the game.

“It’s really a dream to play here. Play on the biggest stage in college basketball. Play in the biggest gym in college basketball. I’m excited for the new guys to get to see, just a little bit, and then when the big games start rolling around, they’ll really see,” Brissett said.

The Orange will open up their regular season on Tuesday, November 6, at 7pm in the Carrier Dome, as they take on Eastern Washington.

zlevine@citrustv.net | @zacharylevine25