Observations from SU’s win over Coppin State: Strong inside presence, more passing
To support student journalism and the content you love, become a member of The Daily Orange today.
Returning back home from a two-game road trip, Syracuse was trailing for much of the first half. Coppin State, one of the weakest shooting teams in the country heading into today, converted at a 51.5% clip from the field. While the Orange weren’t struggling by any means — Dyaisha Fair scored 18 points in the first half — the Eagles were outshooting them in the JMA Wireless Dome.
But SU went on an 18-8 run, implementing a more pass-heavy offense to throw off Coppin State. In the second half, the Orange continued to thrive, finishing with 93 points, their most in a single game this season. Fair finished with a season-high 27 points, while the Orange had the most assists in a single game aside from their Nov. 17 victory over LIU.
As Syracuse improves to 7-2, here are some observations from its 93-75 win over Coppin State (2-8):
Dyaisha Fair keeps Orange alive in first half
When SU needed to come back after being down by 11 points to Yale at halftime, Fair came out strong with 15 points in the final 20 minutes to seal the Orange’s first road win of the season. Fair continued this strong play early on, making aggressive layups, pull-ups and corner 3-pointers.
Syracuse head coach Felisha Legette-Jack told Fair to run a set play on the inbound. Fair received the ball from Georgia Woolley and strode down the court, passing to Cheyenne McEvans, who dished inside to Asia Strong. Strong scored the layup to be the second player to get on the board for SU tonight, following Fair.
Later, Fair performed a give-and-go with Teisha Hyman. Passing to Hyman who headed toward the wing, Hyman passed back to an open Fair now relocated in the corner. Fair nailed the wide open 3-pointer to give Syracuse its first lead of the night with just under four minutes left in the second quarter.
Fair started off as the focal point for SU’s offense before the Orange started to pass more. Late in the first half, Fair stopped, then decided to pull from for 3, missing the shot. But, on the next possession, Fair scored on a fastbreak layup. She finished the game with a team-high six assists to go along with her team-high in points.
More balanced passing
The Orange are less reliant on sharing the ball compared to other teams, averaging the third fewest assists in the Atlantic Coast Conference. But, tonight, passing helped Syracuse get ahead. The Orange finished with 17 assists, their second most in a single game this season.
Ball distribution helped the Orange end the first half on an 18-8 run to get their first lead of the game. After Syracuse passed it around the arc with just under seven minutes left in the second quarter, Hyman nailed a 3-pointer from the wing to cut SU’s deficit to four points.
Two sharp bounce passes left Dariauna Lewis wide open. Lewis made a jumper to increase Syracuse’s lead to three with just over two minutes left. Shortly after, on the fast break off a Colleen Bucknor turnover, Fair threaded a pass to Hyman who cashed in to make the score 49-43.
SU’s 12 first half team assists were more than they totaled across four full games this season. In the second half, its increased ball movement continued. Cheyenne McEvans hit a 3-pointer after Fair sent a long pass across the paint to make the score 57-49 in the third quarter.
Later in the quarter, Woolley zoomed down the court on the fastbreak, sending a hook pass to Fair, who hit the breaks, throwing off the Eagles’ defense slightly. Fair then passed cross-court to Hyman, who nailed another 3-pointer from the wing. Passing helped the Orange keep pace with the Eagles.
Coppin State’s lights-out shooting
In the opening minute of the game, SU’s Teisha Hyman took a 3-point attempt at the top of the key. But the ball hit the rim twice and fell to the Eagles. Mossi Staples went straight down the length of the court and hit a 3-pointer in the corner. On its next possession, Staples got down to the opposite corner and nailed another one.
This hot shooting from the Eagles might come off as peculiar, especially since they entered tonight’s matchup with the Orange as the 327th-best field goal percentage (33.5%). But through the first 16 minutes of play, Staples went 6-of-10 with 17 points to lead a red-hot CSU.
Syracuse has dealt with this challenge before — Yale (243rd best field goal percentage) was lights out in the first half before regressing back to its mean. But the Eagles never stopped.
Even as the Orange pulled away with better shooting, the Eagles still put up a solid effort. Coppin State finished shooting 42% from the field, its second-best performance from the floor this season. Jalynda Salley made two quick layups early in the second half. Bucknor provided solid scoring with some late third quarter makes. While the Eagles were now down by double digits in the fourth quarter, Jewel Watkins continued to nail 3-pointers from the wings.
Asia Strong returns to solid scoring play
In Syracuse’s comeback win over the Bulldogs last Sunday, Strong was a non-factor. She played 10 minutes and didn’t score once. That served in stark contrast to her effort against Purdue, where she recorded 18 points and nabbed 10 boards.
Tonight, Strong returned to her successful play. She consistently used her size and strength to bully Coppin State’s main interior players. Near the end of the first quarter, McEvans found Strong inside, who shook off her defender to score the layup and help SU draw within five.
At the start of the second quarter, Strong responded to an Eagles layup with a make of her own to make the score 29-25. Then with 7:30 in the third, Strong missed her initial jumper, but got her own rebound and converted inside. Strong was an effective scorer, finishing with 16 points.
In the waning minutes, with Syracuse’s victory secured, Strong got a pass from Hyman and scored to pump up the crowd heading into the game’s final media timeout.
