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Syracuse’s season finale had plenty of implications for the team. A win would guarantee SU the four-seed in the ACC tournament, while a loss could’ve dropped the Orange all the way to No. 7 in the conference. 

SU was also playing it’s #Play4Kay game one year after Tiana Mangakahia’s battle with breast cancer. And while the Orange (12-7, 9-7 Atlantic Coast) certainly appeared to play with these factors in mind, SU ultimately fell 68-61 to the Wolfpack (17-2, 12-2).

Here are three takeaways from SU’s 68-61 loss to the Wolfpack on Sunday: 

Get downhill

Kiara Lewis settled for a deep 3-pointer. It was SU’s third consecutive miss from beyond the arc, and this one thudded off the backboard without touching the rim. But following one of SU’s 11 offensive rebounds, she was able to drive, spin and deliver a pretty finish with her left hand. 

Lewis continued to have success getting downhill in the first half, ultimately finishing with 15 first points — of which only three came from 3-pointers. Despite Lewis’ all-around dominant performance, with her 29 points being just three shy of her career-high, few teammates followed her lead. 

Syracuse shot just four-for-24 from beyond the arc, making it the fifth game this season in which the Orange shot under 20% from 3. By only losing the points in the paint battle 40-38 against one of the better interiors in the nation, SU proved it didn’t need to force 3-pointers yet again. 

The D is not silent

Elissa Cunane had Maeva Djaldi-Tabdi backed down, and it was time to choose which post move from her All-American arsenal she wanted to execute. The 6-foot-5 center juked left with her back to the basket, then turned over her right shoulder and put up a left-handed hook shot. 

But Djaldi-Tabdi read it all the way, and the forward stuffed Cunane’s shot while securing the rebound. Djaldi-Tabdi then gave Cunane a taste of her own medicine and finished the layup in the frontcourt. 

Amaya Finklea-Guity fell prey to a similar move by NC State’s Camille Hobby. Cunane exposed Kamilla Cardoso’s inexperience on multiple occasions down low, with the young shot blocker helplessly flailing on up-fakes by the senior.

Cardoso was also in foul trouble for most of the game, finishing with more fouls (four) than points (three) in her 16 minutes of action. But Djaldi-Tabdi appeared up for the challenge, both in the middle of SU’s 2-3 zone and in man-to-man sets. 

Cunane finished with 17 points, above her average of 15.5, but 13 of those came in the second half. Djaldi-Tabdi finished with four blocks, one fewer than her career-high, to go along with four defensive boards.

State happens

Still, the No. 2 Wolfpack simply had more firepower to surge past the Orange. A 13-0 run in the third quarter was the difference in a game that no team had led by more than five previously. 

Even when SU answered with a run of its own and ultimately retook the lead with 5:33 remaining in the game, NC State kept pushing. Cunane overcame her aforementioned first-half struggles to lead the Wolfpack with 17 points and nine rebounds. Jada Boyd chipped in 16 points and 10 rebounds herself. 

Syracuse is now 1-14 in its past 15 games against teams in the AP Top-5. And in similar fashion to SU’s last such game, against No. 1 Louisville, Syracuse faded in the third quarter. 

And because Florida State defeated Wake Forest on Sunday as well, SU now loses its second-round bye in the ACC tournament and will be at best a five-seed, with a chance of falling further. 

Published on February 28, 2021 at 2:24 pm

Contact Tim: tnolan@syr.edu