What I liked...

[LAOrange]

Hard to believe I'm okay with any of that loss. 1) Girard played the best he's ever played 2) Torrance finished at the basket 3) We were getting bombed by a lights-out barrage and we still kept fighting 4) Cole Swider's in a slump and he still kept fighting
A memorable loss like this at the beginning of the season lets a team know it has to work all game: we were up big and still lost. Think Lemoyne in 2009 and Memphis in 2002. Both of those teams went 30-5.
If you can get up after getting punched in the mouth, you can come back.
I say we win Atlantis.

 

[NineOneSeven]

Symir didn’t finish at the rim. Did he have some finishes at the rim? Sure. But he didn’t finish at the rim in any way that made me feel it’s something to like.

 

[Bulldog04]

Yeah I saw Symir miss 3 shots within 4 feet of the rim and not even close

 

[Cusefan0307]

The main positive this season is Girard. I like the way he’s playing. I hope he keeps it up and just gambles a bit less on defense.

 

[Ozone!]

Let’s face it:
We got beat buy a less talented, less athletic team. Their center was slow and methodical and yet he schooled our post players.

We got out coached and out hustled.

Yet this could prove to be a benefit if we learn from it! That is the great unknown.

I hope HCJB and staff can make the adjustments necessary and that the players do their part with commitment to improve each and every game out.

Otherwise, this will be a long and frustrating season which, prior to yesterday’s game, seemed filled with hope!

Lets hope everyone involved got the message from this early season loss!

Go Orange!!!

 

[Newhouser]

The only thing I don't like about Joe is every time he screams something after a bucket, it seems like we get dusted immediately thereafter. It's a karma thing ha.

 

[CardiacCuse]

Hard to believe I'm okay with any of that loss. 1) Girard played the best he's ever played 2) Torrance finished at the basket 3) We were getting bombed by a lights-out barrage and we still kept fighting 4) Cole Swider's in a slump and he still kept fighting
A memorable loss like this at the beginning of the season lets a team know it has to work all game: we were up big and still lost. Think Lemoyne in 2009 and Memphis in 2002. Both of those teams went 30-5.
If you can get up after getting punched in the mouth, you can come back.
I say we win Atlantis.

it all depends if the 43 wide open 3s that colgate got are an anomaly or if that is a feature of this defense.

if the centers cant handle being iso'd on D its gonna be tough to stop anyone...

colgates 17/43 from deep is above average but not quite to the level of lights out barrage

that means they missed 26 3s in the game...they missed a 3 every minute 40 seconds! thats a lot of bricks.

And JG3 played awesome on offense - i wanted him to shoot more...but his 3 point D is suspect - as it always has been.

too early to be sure...but I think the defense is gonna just give up a lot of open shots this year.

 

[jncuse]

It's early but currently our offensive rating is #13 in the country (non schedule adjusted)

2021-22 Men's College Basketball Advanced School Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com

2021-22 Men's College Basketball Season Summary and More About College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com

www.sports-reference.com

Per KP our offencive efficiency is #16, which is a schedule adjusted figure **. We have not had an offensive efficiency to end the season that high since 2012.

Our offence has not disappointed.

*** This figure has a big caveat. While a decent portion of that #16 figure is based on current year, there is also some significant carryover effect in the formula from the prior year team / roster which was #24. It will take another 3 or 4 games for this number to become fairly largely dependent on current season results.

 

[MikeSU02]

Hard to believe I'm okay with any of that loss. 1) Girard played the best he's ever played 2) Torrance finished at the basket 3) We were getting bombed by a lights-out barrage and we still kept fighting 4) Cole Swider's in a slump and he still kept fighting
A memorable loss like this at the beginning of the season lets a team know it has to work all game: we were up big and still lost. Think Lemoyne in 2009 and Memphis in 2002. Both of those teams went 30-5.
If you can get up after getting punched in the mouth, you can come back.
I say we win Atlantis.

Giving you a like but going to disagree. Appreciate the positivity, always.

JGIII was in his bag tonight on O and he’s put the ball in the hoop. End of the day this game is still about getting buckets. Good on him. Here is what worries me - he had an insane offensive game and we still got smoked by Colgate. Not saying it’s his fault, saying that it’s not a good sign for the team.

If we can’t rely on this team to keep fighting, then JB shouldn’t be the coach. They should keep fighting.

At the end of the day we’re going to have a few games where we hit so many threes we’ll just overwhelm teams and run away with it. But we are going to lose a number of games where we get exposed on defense.

My worry is and has been having dynamic PG play in terms of getting the offense flowing so we aren’t relying for off the dribble hero shots and that our D would be bad, which it is.

The other teams you mentioned, especially 2002, had high level talent. We don’t have that on this team.

Again, always appreciate the positivity. Best and worst part of being a fan of sports is the hope.

But it’s the hope that kills ya (all of us).

 

[bballbeadle]

Yes, I was feeling very relaxed about this team. Like, whew! We’re not going to have another season where I dread watching Cuse hoops. I, too, like to think this is a wake up call. But our ineptness on defense was quite discouraging.

 

[tipphill]

this team is very slow. benny needs more minutes and jimmy jr is to slow to play defense. they looked totally lost, and confused and again SLOW. edwards played very well. boeheim needs to ease up on williams. jb has greater problems to deal with

 

[LAOrange]

colgates 17/43 from deep is above average but not quite to the level of lights out barrage

As I recall, they missed their first 11. That means they went 17/32 after or 53%. That's lights out.

 

[CardiacCuse]

As I recall, they missed their first 11. That means they went 17/32 after or 53%. That's lights out.

well if you wanna say the first 11 3s they took didnt happen ok. they did get better as the game went on for sure. once they relized they would have an open shot every time down the floor they relaxed and took their time.

very few of those were with a hand up.

syracuse only going 7/23 is actually a big reason I think they lost. they cannot seem to get open looks for their teammates through passing. they were down and shouldve been making more 3s thats how you make a run.

 

[Red Holzman]

Missed the game, but on condensed game video, Symir's finishes at the basket that I recall were 2 put-backs of his bad misses going to the basket after he was fortunate to grab the rebounds. He totaled 5 points so assume those two baskets are what OP was impressed with(?)

Agree with the many posters that have noted SU stopped guarding the perimeter and sagged in to focus on the big dude posing no threat at top of the key when he got the ball. Hard to watch.

After that ugly loss expect SU to arrive at Atlantis with a nasty disposition, play smart and focused, and hopefully collect big W's.
If not, then I'll be much more concerned about where this year's team is going!

 

[Nicknack]

Hard to believe I'm okay with any of that loss. 1) Girard played the best he's ever played 2) Torrance finished at the basket 3) We were getting bombed by a lights-out barrage and we still kept fighting 4) Cole Swider's in a slump and he still kept fighting
A memorable loss like this at the beginning of the season lets a team know it has to work all game: we were up big and still lost. Think Lemoyne in 2009 and Memphis in 2002. Both of those teams went 30-5.
If you can get up after getting punched in the mouth, you can come back.
I say we win Atlantis.

I tend to agree that there were some positives - even with such a bad loss. I loved how Joe played. We will have a strong season with that kind of consistent play. Regarding Swider though, how are you in a slump after the third game of the season? That said, he will be fine, he's a good player.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Let’s face it:
We got beat buy a less talented, less athletic team. Their center was slow and methodical and yet he schooled our post players.

We got out coached and out hustled.

Yet this could prove to be a benefit if we learn from it! That is the great unknown.

I hope HCJB and staff can make the adjustments necessary and that the players do their part with commitment to improve each and every game out.

Otherwise, this will be a long and frustrating season which, prior to yesterday’s game, seemed filled with hope!

Lets hope everyone involved got the message from this early season loss!

Go Orange!!!

Your first paragraph MAY be right, but on the whole, as constructed, with their scheme and execution, the were the better team, without a doubt.

 

[Ozone!]

I find no argument with your take; they outplayed, out hustled and out coached us!

 

[Melancer46]

Girard has finally been looking like the shooter he was billed as coming out of high school. Very exciting stuff.

The scary stuff, to me, are (in no particular order)

• Just a major lack of effort on the glass. Theoretically this should be easy to fix, but we've gone through so many years now of changing personnel and guys still just won't try to rebound so my hopes are pretty low. It just seems to not be something that Jim stresses about.
• Symir and Benny are unplayable together right now due to their shooting woes (and in Symir's case, scoring woes all-around).
• I'm not very confident that we have a backup PG, which might not be a huge problem if Joe continues to play the way he has this season, but if he returns to his normal level of play, it'll be pretty rough not having a productive alternative.
• Edwards' hands terrify me. Struggles to grab rebounds. Even when he does grab them, you can tell he's just not comfortable catching basketballs; often double catches them, catches them below his shoulder level, etc. You can see it when he tries to make moves offensively too such as the one where he tried to go up through some minimal contact; he just doesn't hold the ball well at all. A bit reminiscent of Baye Moussa Keita. Edwards has made some progress in other areas to make himself a playable big now, but I don't think we have a starting caliber big man on the roster, especially when you consider that nobody outside of Girard is going to help them rebound the ball.

 

[Ghost]

Yes, I was feeling very relaxed about this team. Like, whew! We’re not going to have another season where I dread watching Cuse hoops. I, too, like to think this is a wake up call. But our ineptness on defense was quite discouraging.

I suppose it depends on perspective. If you were hoping to see a lot of points, this is your team. It should be fun as we can shoot, and should stack points.

While I do suspect this may be the best zone team we've had - we have some really high IQ guys, and they really know how to play the game. I remain somewhat concerned that we looked at each position 1-4, determined what the best "type" of player was for "our" zone, and then acquired the opposite of that. I'm not sure how that story ends.

We used to entice teams into threes, and we could push them out, or adjust a bit, often leaving them with the "fool's gold" effect. However, if the threes aren't falling, you can always just drive, or get the offensive rebound - or pretty much do whatever you want against our D. At least I suspect a lot of times our opponents will have their way with us. That's my worry at least.

 

[hoopsupstate]

His hands are fine on offense. His problem is his hand strength trying to get rebounds in traffic.

 

[TinyManInside]

Hard to believe I'm okay with any of that loss. 1) Girard played the best he's ever played 2) Torrance finished at the basket 3) We were getting bombed by a lights-out barrage and we still kept fighting 4) Cole Swider's in a slump and he still kept fighting
A memorable loss like this at the beginning of the season lets a team know it has to work all game: we were up big and still lost. Think Lemoyne in 2009 and Memphis in 2002. Both of those teams went 30-5.
If you can get up after getting punched in the mouth, you can come back.
I say we win Atlantis.

What game were you watching? Sy missed all his layups going to the basket BADLY. He got 2 offensive rebound putbacks jumping over smaller unathletic guards, but do you think he's going to get those against ACC teams?

 

[bballbeadle]

I suppose it depends on perspective. If you were hoping to see a lot of points, this is your team. It should be fun as we can shoot, and should stack points.

While I do suspect this may be the best zone team we've had - we have some really high IQ guys, and they really know how to play the game. I remain somewhat concerned that we looked at each position 1-4, determined what the best "type" of player was for "our" zone, and then acquired the opposite of that. I'm not sure how that story ends.

We used to entice teams into threes, and we could push them out, or adjust a bit, often leaving them with the "fool's gold" effect. However, if the threes aren't falling, you can always just drive, or get the offensive rebound - or pretty much do whatever you want against our D. At least I suspect a lot of times our opponents will have their way with us. That's my worry at least.

Ya, we sure need a lot of help on D. I was at the game and at least twice our players ran into each other. It was Keystone Cops.

When we fall apart like this, we need to aggressively get the ball to Buddy. If he’s having trouble, give him help!

 

[blust2i3d4]

Let’s face it:
We got beat buy a less talented, less athletic team. Their center was slow and methodical and yet he schooled our post players.

We got out coached and out hustled.

Yet this could prove to be a benefit if we learn from it! That is the great unknown.

I hope HCJB and staff can make the adjustments necessary and that the players do their part with commitment to improve each and every game out.

Otherwise, this will be a long and frustrating season which, prior to yesterday’s game, seemed filled with hope!

Lets hope everyone involved got the message from this early season loss!

Go Orange!!!

Their center is bigger than our center and never panic so he distributed the ball well. That is always the key to beat Boeheim's zone. That is why Boeheim switched to man-to-man. But when it did not cause panic, he should have switched back to zone and tried to find another way, like letting JG3 shoot 3 pointers.
This game should teach all other coaches. The center is more important than the point guard when playing a zone team like Syracuse. Just let the center standing still on the foul line and distribute the ball. But you have to a big and very physical center to make this work.

 

[Ozone!]

Agreed,
This is only the first of many occasions this season where the other teams post players are more physical than ours. Fortunately, we are at the beginning of the season. Unfortunately, the upcoming tournament may expose some of these weaknesses without much chance for coaching to prepare for these types of situations.