MIAMI – Nearly 10 minutes into the first half of Friday’s game, Syracuse had more blocks than Stephen F. Austin had field goals. The Orange only had two blocks, but Stephen F. Austin didn’t make its first shot until 12:48 left in the first half.

‘Sometimes when teams see our defense for the first time, they struggle against it a bit,’ head coach Jim Boeheim said. ‘I thought we made good adjustments, and we got to the right guys.’

The Lumberjacks came into the game shooting about 45 percent from the field on the year. Against Syracuse, that average was nearly cut in half. SU’s zone suffocated the Lumberjacks and forced them to shoot 24.7 percent from the field, the lowest number of the season for any Orange opponent, as SU went on to win, 59-44.

SFA’s point total was also the the lowest score Syracuse has held an opponent to all season. The previously low was 51 against Division II opponent Le Moyne.

The Lumberjacks missed their first eight shot attempts, and when they finally did convert a layup, it was already down, 14-4, to a bigger, stronger Orange team.

‘They were giving us the jump shot, and we just had to stand there and hit them in the first couple of minutes,’ SFA guard Josh Alexander said. ‘We just couldn’t hit (a shot).’

Alexander, the Lumberjacks’ second-leading scorer averaging over 14 points per game, was held to eight points. The guard usually makes 3-pointers at a 35 percent clip, but shot 0-7 from beyond the arc Friday. He wasn’t much better Friday, hoisting up a game-high 20 shots, but converting on just four attempts.

The struggles from deep weren’t just a problem for Alexander. The Orange prevented the Stephen F. Austin from converting on a single 3-point field goal attempt the entire first half. The second half wasn’t any better for the No. 14-seed, as it made just two 3’s on 10 attempts. The two 3-pointers were yet another bar the Orange met, it tied the lowest for an opponent on the year. It was the second-worst showing from deep for the Lumberjacks shot this season.

‘We just got out on the shooters,’ SU guard Eric Devendorf said. ‘We took away a couple of their shots that they’re comfortable taking.’

The shot from the outside were forced because the Orange packed the zone in the paint. The undersized Lumberjacks couldn’t figure out a way to penetrate into the paint without getting their shot blocked. The Orange finished the game with a season-best 11 blocked shots, with Rick Jackson leading the way tying a career high five. The second-highest output of the season came against Connecticut but it took six overtime periods to accumulate the 10 blocks.

The missed shots led to an increased opportunity to grab rebounds, and the Orange took advantage. Syracuse stayed in its 2-3 zone throughout the game, but seemingly never missed a box-out assignment. The Lumberjacks managed 14 offensive boards and converted on just half of those attempts finishing with eight second chance points.

The lack of shots falling led to another low-scoring game for the Orange’s opponent, something that has become the norm. For the fourth time in nine games SU has held its opponent to fewer than 22 points in the first half.

Overall, the Orange has held seven opponents to 30 points or fewer in the first half. In those games SU is a perfect 7-0. If the Orange wants to make a deep run into the Tournament, performances on the defensive end like it has recently will propel it.

‘We’ve played great defense for the past three or four weeks now,’ Andy Rautins said. ‘We crushed them on the boards today too. We just have to continue to do that.’

mibonner@syr.edu

Published on March 20, 2009 at 12:00 pm