Syracuse falls to No. 7 Notre Dame in just second home loss this season

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Georgia Woolley drove towards the right baseline and flipped up a floater to help Syracuse draw within 13 of Notre Dame with 2:45 left. There was still a chance, but the Orange had minimal space for error.

Then, Olivia Miles lost her defender before hitting a 3-pointer from the top of the key, making the score 70-54.

Alaina Rice air balled from long range and The Fighting Irish bided their time, walking the ball up with under a minute remaining, knowing that a win was secured.

Despite keeping things close after three quarters with strong defensive efforts and efficient transition scoring, Syracuse (13-5, 4-3 Atlantic Coast) lost to No. 7 Notre Dame (14-2, 5-1 ACC) 72-56, after The Fighting Irish pulled away in the final 10 minutes thanks to a quick succession of three pointers in the dying embers of the contest.

“We have to be mentally focused on being able to play 40 minutes,” head coach Felisha Legette-Jack said. “Every time we tried to catch our breath, they busted us in the mouth. I think the best is yet to come.”

In the first quarter, a Dyaisha Fair elbow jumper followed quickly by a Teisha Hyman layup helped Syracuse jump out to an early 4-0 lead before Notre Dame got on the board. The two teams then traded baskets until the midpoint of the opening period before The Fighting Irish went on a short scoring run.

Although Syracuse found success in its halfcourt sets, ten of the Orange’s 16 first-quarter points came on the fast break. Meanwhile, most of Notre Dame’s offensive production came inside the paint as The Fighting Irish totaled 14 of its respective 16 points from assisted layups near the basket.

Syracuse started the second quarter sluggishly, producing just four points through the first five minutes. Miles led the charge for Notre Dame during SU’s scoring troubles, finishing on two smooth, open layups for her sixth and eighth points.

Toward the end of the first half, Syracuse had started to set the tone defensively against The Fighting Irish. Recording three blocks in both the first and second quarters, the Orange, despite suffering significant height disadvantages in the front court, were able to hold their own.

Notre Dame’s Kylee Watson had position over Asia Strong inside when she caught the ball on the right side. Thinking she had an easy layup to extend ND’s lead with a little over four minutes remaining in the half, Watson put up an attempt that Strong met at the apex, smothering it and sparking an offensive possession for the Orange.

“She’s going out there and playing more free because she has a clear understanding from me what the expectation is defensively and offensively,” Legette-Jack said of Strong after the forward put up 11 points. “I just love how she’s becoming a student of the game.”

Rice ran the length of the floor, spearheading a Syracuse fast break, and delivered a bounce pass to Strong who was positioned diagonally to her left. Avoiding a Notre Dame defender, Strong attempted an up-and-under layup that came up just short, but Kyra Wood corralled the offensive rebound and scored an open layup to give the Orange its first lead of the second quarter, 25-24, with 2:35 left in the half.

Then, Dara Mabrey pump-faked on a corner three before driving and hitting a pull-up jumper. A couple of possessions later, Mabrey hit her first 3-pointer of the game off of a KK Bransford assist to give Notre Dame a 29-25 lead.

Fair sprinted up the court and drove inside before passing out to Woolley on the left wing. Having just hit a corner three on SU’s previous offensive possession, Notre Dame made sure to close-out on Woolley but the guard opted to drive inside instead, catching the ball and penetrating almost immediately. Passing up a mid-range pull-up jumper, Woolley dumped the ball down low to Wood, who finished with a right-handed layup to help the Orange draw within two — part of an 8-0 SU run to start the third quarter.

“She’s a force to be reckoned with,” Legette-Jack said of Wood’s performance in the paint.

Shortly after, Syracuse snatched the lead back from The Fighting Irish with seven-and-a-half minutes left in the period. Streaking down the right sideline, Fair hesitated and drove before halting suddenly and pulling the ball back out toward the three-point line. She had spotted a mismatch. While the Notre Dame defense got back into position, Fair launched from the right wing and watched the ball nestle into the net for her second three-pointer of the game to put SU up by one, 34-33.

The remainder of the third quarter was much like the first in that neither team could find the edge over the other. When Dariauna Lewis hit a layup and drew an and-one opportunity to help Syracuse gain some momentum, Mabrey did the same on the ensuing Notre Dame possession with a jumper near the free-throw line to quiet the home crowd. Mabrey went on to hit from the charity stripe. Lewis did not.

With Notre Dame up 41-40, Miles stole the ball off of an attempted Woolley drive inside to convert on an open left-handed layup to put The Fighting Irish up by three. Shortly after, the ND point guard recorded her second steal of the game off of Hyman’s attempted pass inside to Wood and laid the ball up on the opposite side to help increase the lead to 47-42.

To start the fourth, Miles continued to have her way with the Syracuse defense, hitting a fall-away jumper near the left elbow. Bransford scored a left-handed layup on ND’s next offensive possession to build on its strong end to the third quarter. Then, Sonia Citron hit a 3-pointer from the right corner — her second make from range in as many attempts — to give The Fighting Irish a 12-point lead, 57-45, forcing head coach Legette-Jack to call timeout.

“We have to be able to sustain that same energy, that same intensity for that entire game,” Wood said.

Two Syracuse scores from Woolley and Rice sandwiched a Lauren Ebo layup with 5:27 left in the game. A Mabrey three from the left corner increased the Notre Dame lead to 15 before Strong’s three-point play made it 64-52, digging a deeper hole for the Orange.

“We’re right there with all of these teams,” Woolley said. “A lot of people didn’t think we’d be anything at the beginning of the season, but I think we’re just proving with every game that we are. It’s going to be exciting.”