Beat writers split if Syracuse will bounce back against Northeastern
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Syracuse is reeling from a loss to Colgate, the second straight year it’s done so. Despite a strong start against Lehigh, a much more experienced and pass-heavy Raiders team exploited a poor SU defensive performance and capitalized on what head coach Jim Boeheim called a “horrendous” offensive performance. Now the Orange welcome Northeastern to the JMA Wireless Dome, a team that is off to an 0-3 start.
The Huskies have good depth — they scored 18 bench points against Harvard — but have yet to top 70 points in a game this year. Northeastern has yet to beat Syracuse in eight chances, but Boeheim has mentioned after both games this year that the Orange have tons of work to do and are nowhere near where they could be.
Here’s what our beat writers predict will happen against Northeastern.
Anish Vasudevan (1-1)
Back on track
Syracuse 72, Northeastern 62
Colgate was a good team. Northeastern isn’t. The Raiders made the NCAA Tournament last season with an offense that Jim Boeheim said was on the level of some of the best Atlantic Coast Conference teams. The Huskies are 0-3 this season and went on a 12-game losing streak last year. If Syracuse doesn’t win on Saturday, it would be extremely concerning.
The defense isn’t where it needs to be right now, which should be expected this early in the season. But the offense looked abysmal versus Colgate. The Orange were held to under 70 points. They’ll need to work out their kinks offensively, but even if they have a bad night, they can easily outscore Northeastern, who has averaged 65.7 points per game this year.
Connor Smith (1-1)
One step at a time
Syracuse 74, Northeastern 59
Admittedly, it is tough to pick Syracuse after its performance on Tuesday. But as Anish noted, Colgate is a good team that will likely win its league again this season. Northeastern, like last year, is struggling. Two of the Huskies’ three losses were close, but they weren’t competitive against Providence last Saturday in an 89-65 loss. They aren’t a great 3-point shooting team (just 31.7%), but rank near the bottom nationally in defensive 3-point percentage (39%).
Syracuse has plenty of work to do, with significant defensive woes that need to be addressed, along with the fact there isn’t any scoring depth. Four SU players combined to score all but seven of its points against the Raiders, and the Orange had a subpar performance from both inside and outside the arc. There’s obviously the defensive struggles, too, but it’s good news that Syracuse can begin fixing them against a team like Northeastern instead of one like Duke or North Carolina. The nonconference slate is there for the Orange to help prepare them for conference and postseason play, and Saturday afternoon’s game will allow them to begin taking steps toward competing at a higher level later this season.
Anthony Alandt (1-1)
Oh boy
Northeastern 70, Syracuse 65
Yes Northeastern is 0-3, dropping games to Boston, Providence and Harvard, but Syracuse isn’t nearly the team it should be at the moment, nor will it be on Saturday. Judah Mintz looks like he has the potential to become a real star with the Orange, and Symir Torrence is a serviceable sixth man, but this team isn’t cohesive or productive thus far. Boeheim knows it too, stating that the Orange have a long way to go even after a win over Lehigh.
They face a team that’s shooting 31.7% on 3-pointers and averages nearly nine 3s per game. It’s not stand out numbers, nor do the trends Northeastern has put up in the earlygoing show that it should beat Syracuse handily. But without a player to help Mintz — Edwards was wildly less effective against Colgate — the Orange are going to have a tough time putting away the Huskies. Colgate showed how to exploit SU, and Northeastern has the personnel to replicate that success in the JMA Wireless Dome.
