‘Free Dyaisha’ is the key to unlocking No. 19 Syracuse’s offense

Get the latest Syracuse news delivered right to your inbox. Subscribe to our sports newsletter here.

Considering the rigorous workload that’s placed upon Dyaisha Fair each game, you’d think Syracuse has a predictable, one-dimensional offense. So, what’s the secret for SU to consistently display its full offensive potential? Taking the ball out of its star’s hands.

Fair drops 21.8 points per game, has made the third-most 3s in the country with 99 — 31 more than the next-closest Atlantic Coast Conference player. She also sports 4.2 offensive win shares, the eighth-most in the nation, per HerHoopStats.

The opposition’s common response is exhausting all options to thwart Syracuse’s most dangerous artillery. Fair often faces traps at the top of the key and is sometimes face-guarded in a full-court press. Head coach Felisha Legette-Jack has recognized this scheme, adapting by playing Fair off the ball to generate more open shots.

“It does free her up a little bit to be a two (guard) and kind of see the game differently,” Legette-Jack said on Feb. 28. “Having to control the ball, deal with two people trapping her and also running the team, that’s a hard thing to do.”

“When she plays off the ball, it kind of frees her up and oh boy, we’ll have ‘Free Dyaisha.’”

But Legette-Jack wants “Free Dyaisha” to become a staple for No. 19 Syracuse (23-5, 13-4 ACC). The strategy allows Fair to roam around the perimeter and receive plentiful catch-and-shoot chances. Comeback wins over then-No. 15 Florida State and then-No. 15 Louisville were games where Fair ruled the fourth quarter and showed SU’s poise when she wasn’t the primary ball handler.

Cole Ross | Digital Design Editor

The Orange have recently been dull in half-court sets where Fair is the traditional point, with the lowlights being in losses to then-No. 19 VT and Duke. Legette-Jack pinpointed her team’s lacking guard depth as the issue, which forces Fair to run point in most outings.

“You don’t get to be on the court if you don’t earn it, and that’s what we’ve been dealing with,” Legette-Jack said. “And as soon as those young ladies decide that they’re going to show up in practice, then they’ll show up in the game and ‘Free Dyaisha’ earlier.”

Legette-Jack didn’t clarify who she was chastising. But over the last handful of games, she’s slashed the playing time of Kennedi Perkins, her main bench point guard option. Perkins hasn’t played more than 10 minutes since playing 22 minutes on Jan. 18 versus FSU — where she put up nine points and three assists at the two alongside Fair.

Fair drained a program-record nine 3-pointers against the Seminoles, curling around picks and unleashing from the wings. She dropped 11 of her 31 points in the fourth, all while Perkins was playing, as the Orange completed an 18-point comeback.

The lineup first shined through SU’s historic come-from-behind win over Clemson. After the Orange trailed by as much as 19, Fair dropped 14 points in the fourth quarter to take an advantage late. Perkins was in during 11 of Fair’s 14, helping space the floor to draw open looks for the star guard.

Yet in her next six appearances, Perkins failed to warrant more than 10 minutes of playing time. She saw the court for just three minutes in an 81-69 loss at Louisville on Feb. 1.

Fair was back to being the main point and struggled for the first three quarters, shooting 4-for-11 from the field. She was trapped around the perimeter, making just one of four attempts from 3 before the fourth quarter. Fair tallied 15 points in the fourth, but the game was already out of reach.

Cardinals head coach Jeff Walz was in support of Syracuse’s predictable set, expressing that he preferred to test SU’s supporting cast rather than Fair.

“Syracuse is going to Fair. You all know it, and you still can’t stop her,” Walz said postgame. “And I thought up until the last three and a half minutes, we had done a really good job on making it difficult to get shots off, challenging her shots.”

The next time the two squared off, Legette-Jack tinkered Perkins back into the rotation. She was subbed in for the final 6:45 of the game and helped the Orange storm back to upset Louisville 73-72.

Legette-Jack said U-of-L shied away from trapping Perkins because she’s “as strong as a mule” and can efficiently run the floor. It allowed Fair to drain a pair of catch-and-shoot 3s, draw a double team while driving and feed Perkins for a crucial go-ahead basket late in the fourth.

Still, Syracuse reverted to its old form with Fair at point throughout SU’s loss to Duke on Feb. 22. The Orange shot a season-low 25%, turned the ball over more times (15) than they made shots (14) and scored the fewest points (45) they’ve ever had in a single game under Legette-Jack.

For the entire contest, Fair was the true point guard while Perkins barely saw the floor. She wasn’t rotating to receive open feeds and instead threw errant shots up as her teammates failed to create space around her. Fair scored a game-best 22 points, yet went 7-for-25 from the field.

Kara Lawson’s Blue Devils’ squad crafted an exquisite game plan to stall Fair in the half court. Guards Taina Mair, Oluchi Okananwa and Jadyn Donovan double-teamed Fair on drives and trapped her on the wings. As the primary ball-handler, Fair resorted to forcing errant shots while her teammates struggled to create space.

“We weren’t going to practice tomorrow,” Legette-Jack said after the game, “but we will practice tomorrow because we should have a lot of energy.”

Barreling into March, the Orange are at a crossroads with their offensive scheme. The risk of playing Perkins, or other bench guards, seems too severe for Legette-Jack. Despite her success off the bench during a few of SU’s victories, Perkins has limitations as a volume scorer and on defense against more athletic guards.

But with what Syracuse has already experienced when Fair plays off the ball, it may prove to be an enticing tactic if SU wants to augment Fair’s postseason production.

“We can win any kind of way,” Legette-Jack said. “We’d like to have Dyaisha at the two-guard spot, but the other guards got to show up and show me they can play the point.”