Women's Basketball | 1/10/2015 1:56:00 PM |
#21 Orange Meets Virginia Sunday
Third Atlantic Coast Conference contest of the year
No. 21 Syracuse (10-5, 0-2) vs. Virginia (12-3, 2-0)
Game Details: Sunday, January 11 | 1 p.m.
Location: Carrier Dome | Syracuse, N.Y.
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Game Notes: Syracuse |
Virginia
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The No. 21 Syracuse University women's basketball team will take on its third Atlantic Coast Conference-foe during the 2014-15 season when it plays hosts to Virginia on Sunday afternoon. The in-conference showdown will begin at 1 p.m. in the Carrier Dome.
In the Orange's latest contest, Syracuse came up just short on the road against No. 13/12 Duke, losing 74-72 on Jan. 8. The squad tied the contest up with 52 seconds remaining after a 3-point field goal from junior guard
Brianna Butler. A lay-up from junior guard
Cornelia Fondren rimmed out with seconds remaining, which would have tied the game and sent it to overtime.
Virginia comes into the Carrier Dome with the top mark in ACC play thus far this year. The Cavaliers are a perfect 2-0 in conference competition, defeating Wake Forest and Virginia Tech. On the other hand, Syracuse has yet to win a game against ACC opposition in 2014-15, suffering losses to Duke and Notre Dame.
Locked In
Junior guard
Brianna Butler has continued to prove she is a threat from anywhere on the court for opposing defenses. Butler currently averages 13.7 points per game, which ranks second on the team and 20th in the ACC. She has been locked in since the start of ACC play, leading the team in scoring in conference competition, averaging 21.0 points per game.
One could easily say that Butler's strength is her 3-point shooting. With 3.0 3-point field goals made per game, she leads the ACC and ranks 13th in the nation. Butler has knocked down at least four 3-point field goals on five different occasions during the 2014-15 season. She is 32 3-point field goals shy of the Syracuse career record currently held by Julie McBride, who sank 229 from 2001-04.
In the team's first-ever trip to historic Cameron Indoor Stadium, Butler put together her best outing of the season, thus far. Butler scored a season-best 23 points on seven 3-point field goals, which matched a career-best. She knocked down three 3-point field goals in the final seven minutes of play at No. 13/12 Duke, including the game-tying 3-point field goal with 52 seconds remaining in regulation.
The junior guard started off conference competition with a bang against No. 4/4 Notre Dame on Jan. 4. Butler led the team with 19 points against the Fighting Irish, the 2013 national runner-up. She has led the team in scoring five times in 2014-15, which leads the squad. In addition, she has cracked double-digits on 12 occasions, which ranks second on the Orange.
After only managing five and seven points, respectively, in the team's first two outings of the 2014-15 season, Butler scored in double-figures in 10 consecutive games. In that time, she scored more than 15 points on five different occasions. The King of Prussia, Pa. native has scored 18 points twice this season, both coming against two of the nation's top teams, South Carolina and Michigan State.
Conference Competition
The Orange enters its second season in the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2014-15. Through two games in conference competition in 2014-15, Syracuse has yet to score a victory against ACC opposition, losing to perennial powers Duke and Notre Dame.
In its first season in the league in 2013-14, the squad owned a 10-6 mark in conference play. Similar to this season, the team dropped its first two contests against ACC foes, but won 10 of its last 14 games in conference competition to finish in fifth place during the regular season.
Series Breakdown
Syracuse and Virginia will meet for the sixth time all-time on Sunday afternoon. Virginia owns a 3-2 advantage in the series, but Syracuse has won the past two contests. It marks the Cavaliers' third trip to Syracuse, where the teams have split their two previous meetings, as well.
Last year, the Orange scored an 84-75 victory against Virginia on Jan. 26, 2014 in the friendly confines of the Carrier Dome.
Brittney Sykes scored 27 points to lead the team to its third consecutive victory in conference competition
