When the Orange led going into halftime, it would come away with a win.

That assumption was nearly as safe as the one that said Syracuse would come away with victory when it played in the Carrier Dome.

Just once this year, SU lost a game it led at halftime — a Dec. 2 nonconference showdown with Temple.

Until Saturday. Since then, the Orange has held two halftime leads. Both games SU has lost.

“It’s just about maintaining” what his team does in the first half, SU head coach Quentin Hillsman said. “I think that basketball’s a game of runs, and obviously, when you’re playing a team that can score the basketball in bunches, you have to be able to sustain those runs.”

For the past week, No. 22 Syracuse (22-5, 12-4 Big East) has twice held control of what would have been a statement road win. Instead of adding a pair of marquee victories, the Orange remains searching for one as it looks to put an end to its second-half collapses against Villanova (18-9, 7-7) in the Dome on Saturday at 3 p.m.

It also provides an opportunity to avenge a Jan. 26 loss to the Wildcats, another missed opportunity for a marquee victory.

“Every game’s important, whether it’s a ranked team or not, I think it’s just important to win your home games,” Hillsman said. “I know that our RPI’s high and I know that we scheduled tough.”

It’s that same mentality SU hopes will pull it out of its second-half doldrums. For much of the season, it’s been the first half in which the Orange has exhibited sloppiness, culminating with an abysmal 15-point first half against Rutgers.

Those problems, though, appear to be solved. Syracuse jumped out to 13- and 15- point leads against South Florida and No. 2 Notre Dame, respectively, and led both teams at halftime. Now it’s the second halves that are the issue.

The solution that kept SU consistent this season, Carmen Tyson-Thomas said, is doing, “the same thing night in and night out.” When Syracuse is defending well and making good decisions, it’s near unstoppable. But replicating that for 40 minutes has been a problem.

“Coach constantly reminds us that those are things we need to do,” the SU guard said, “and we need to make tougher plays.”

Returning home, though, may help the Orange kick its slump. Syracuse remains unbeaten –12-0 – in the Dome this season. On Saturday, the Orange staged a second-half comeback of its own after being down four at the half against the Scarlet Knights.

When it’s played poorly for stretches in the Dome, it’s paired that with enough runs of good play to tilt the game back in SU’s favor.

“Not going to lie,” Syracuse center Kayla Alexander said, “it’s always nice coming back home and playing in front of your home crowd in your home gym.”

Before the Orange’s first matchup with the Wildcats this season, Hillsman said Villanova is the toughest team to prepare for in the conference. The Wildcats play at one of the slowest paces in the nation – their 57.8 points per game ranks 255th in the country. Their 51.4 points allowed per game is good for No. 11.

But the keys remain the same. SU has a game plan it sticks to every game: Work the ball to Alexander and force turnovers on defense, as long as it executes that it can play as well as it has during its best stretches.

Now SU has to worry about how it can react. Until recently, Syracuse hasn’t had to get used to conceding these second-half comebacks. And with two games left, there’s not much time left to adjust.

“It’s just about being able to respond to some of these runs,” Hillsman said, “and we’ll do a better job of that the next couple weeks.”

Published on February 28, 2013 at 1:30 am

Contact David: dbwilson@syr.edu | @DBWilson2