Unraveling the Syracuse Orange's Loss to Georgetown
The Turning Points for the Orange
In the first half, both teams were locked in a tight battle, with Syracuse never leading by more than five points (9-4) and Georgetown holding a maximum one-possession lead (20-17). However, things took a turn during one play in the second half. Elijah Moore was called for a foul while Jayden Epps dribbled the ball up the court. This incident led to a technical foul being assessed to Lucas Taylor and Georgetown's Drew Fielder, shifting the energy in the JMA Wireless Dome in favor of Syracuse. From the 12:59 mark, the Orange took its largest lead of the game. Jaquan Carlos made six free throws and followed it up with an and-one layup from Jyare Davis. But there was a second turning point that slowly pulled the energy back towards the Hoyas. With eight minutes left, Syracuse made only two field goals - a two-point jumper from Elijah Moore and a three from Carlos. After that, the Orange managed only two points in the final four minutes, allowing Georgetown to come back and seal the deal.The lack of outside shooting was a recurring issue for the Orange. They shot just 25% (4/16) from three, with Chris Bell having a quiet day offensively, shooting 0/4 from three and now down to 25% on the season with 4.9 attempts per game. Moore and Donnie Freeman were the only two players to attempt at least three outside shots, while five players didn't attempt a three at all. Despite going 21/29 on free throws and scoring 34 paint points (nearly 78% of their total points), the offense stalled late, and Georgetown outscored them by 12 points in the paint. The math will continue to be a problem unless Syracuse improves its outside shooting efficiency or forces more turnovers to get more transition opportunities.
The Rotation is Slowly Getting Thinner
It's clear that coach Adrian Autry's preferred units are well-defined at this point. Eddie Lampkin, Carlos, and Moore all played over 35 minutes against Georgetown. Freeman was benched for most of the second half in favor of Davis, and Taylor stayed in at the three over Bell. Regardless of the future, these seven players will likely be the main contributors until Starling returns. Kyle Cuffe and Naheem McLeod each played less than five minutes. Bell's lack of efficiency is a major concern. The frontcourt should be stable, but the backcourt and perimeter are areas where performance can vary.Now, it's your turn to share your takeaways from the Orange's loss to Georgetown. What do you think went wrong and what could they do differently in the future?