Syracuse, N.Y. ― The Syracuse Orange’s convincing early season wins had fans and analysts alike thinking this young, athletic team might be ready for prime time.
Then came Tuesday’s uncomfortably close 78-73 victory over Monmouth, a game where Syracuse nearly squandered a 14-point lead and struggled with free throw shooting.
Now, with a brutal gauntlet next week in the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas – games against top-5 Houston, perennial powerhouse Kansas, and a third high-major opponent to be determined – the question becomes much more urgent: Is Syracuse actually ready for this massive step up in competition?
On the latest episode of the “Inside Syracuse Basketball” podcast, I put that exact question to former Syracuse player Brandon Triche.
“If I would not have seen the Monmouth game, I would have said yes,” Triche said. ”But now that I see that, like now that I’ve seen the Monmouth game, now I’m like a little bit more skeptical."
The concerning performance against Monmouth revealed specific weaknesses that elite teams like Houston will likely exploit. Most notably, Syracuse’s defensive disruption disappeared.
After forcing over 18 turnovers per game in its first three contests, the Orange managed just 12 forced turnovers against Monmouth, with a mere four steals.
“They need to get steals,” Triche said. “If they get steals, they become a totally different team.”
Without those transition opportunities, Syracuse looked ordinary, struggling to create rhythm in the halfcourt and finding itself in a dogfight with a team it should have easily handled. Now imagine that against Houston’s suffocating defense or Kansas’s size and experience.
Listen to the entire conversation here, or click below.
