Louisville 73 - Syracuse 69: Not So YUM!-MY

You think The Axeman has the copyright on just listing out the good and bad from each game? I say prove it. Show me that copyright. Until then, that's all you're getting from me. No fancy prose. No philosophical waxing. No poetic explanations. Just cold, hard facts.

The Bad

The Three's - At this point I give up. It's time to just accept it. Everyone is going to have a career day against us from beyond the arc. It's fact. Louisville hit 13 three in this game but it felt like they hit 33. They "only" shot 48% from three, but I swear if I told you they shot 75%, you'd believe me.  Is it our defense? Is it just streakiness? It's certainly looking a lot less like like dumb luck. And it's only going to remain an issue all season. Live by the three, die by the three isn't just an offensive strategy it seems, it's also how Syracuse's defense exists.

Rick Jackson - Seven points, seven rebounds. A hugely ineffective day from Mr. Double-Double. It's the second-straight game he failed to get into double digits in either category. That only happened one other time this entire year. The guards need to get him the ball more but that doesn't explain the rebounding production.

Kris Joseph - Remember when we went into this season assuming Kris Joseph was gone this year? It was a foregone conclusion that he'd be a late first-rounder. Now? Would anyone even consider drafting him? He's hasn't terrible, not at all. He just hasn't been great...or consistent. Maybe it works out that he's looking more and more like a return for his senior year, but we still need more out of him this year.

Dion Waiters - It's hard to make me beg for Scoop to return to the game. Dion did that quite well in his ten minutes.

Scoop Jardine - Scoop is Scoop. He will do terrible things that no person who seems to have common sense would do on a basketball court. Deal with it (or don't).

Refs - Are refs always as terrible as they are this season? Probably, and it's not the reason Syracuse lost, but...come on, man. I'll let Brent Axe spell it out:

1. When Baye Moussa Keita was hacked over and over by Preston Knowles in the first half and they called a jump ball? REALLY?

2. With about five minutes to go, C.J. Fair CLEARLY got his arm raked and not a whistle was heard.

3. But the one that obviously takes the cake was the call with :28 to go when a one-and-one situation with Chris Smith was changed to a 2-shot shooting foul.

I know, complaining about the refs is hacky. But if its true, what do you want?

Free Throws - The Orange missed seven. They lost by less than seven. I am just sayin'.

Louisville - They own us. No denying this. We've lost seven-straight to them and we have only one win against them since they joined the conference. If the Big East scheduler sends us to Louisville again next year, we're egging his house.

The Good

Fightin' The Fight - Hey, we didn't give up. Down 19 after a 32-9 run by the Cardinals, the Orange could have easily packed it in ALA the Seton Hall game and non one would have thought otherwise. On the road against an opponent they've had no luck against, it seemed an insurmountable climb. And yet, they attempted it anyway. And almost completed a comeback for the ages. If you want silver linings, you may have that one.

Brandon Triche - Howard's Nephew did good things together when it mattered most. How often has that happened in the last month. Triche has quietly asserted himself as a dependable go-to guy who will get the job done. Playing in a backcourt full of ego, Triche is beginning to assert himself and make his plays. This is good.He scored a season-high 21. Let's keep it up.

Late-game Scoop - Jardine vacillates between being an out-of-control, heart-attack inducing nightmare for Orange fans and our the quintessential hero. More often than not he's the first one but late in the game he became the latter, if only for a brief time.

Baye Moussa Keita - Maybe he started on a technicality but he still proved himself more worthy that Fab Melo. Unfortunately, he left the game early with a hand injury. Fingers crossed, though not his own.

C.J. Fair - Officially this year's Kris Joseph. He provides the needed spark off the bench and makes a solid contribution every game. Brings some much-needed excitement to the court with him. Strangely, we rely on the freshmen like Fair and Keita to provide the emotional lift each game. Whether or not that's a good thing, well...

On paper, Syracuse had a pretty good game. We won the rebounding battle, we shot 45% from beyond the arc and over 50% overall. If you didn't know better, you'd think there's no way we could lose with those numbers. Alas...

The Big East - The upsets and attrition continue to happen around us. So take solace that even when we lose, so did some other really good Big East team. We're not the only ones...

Random Discussion-Starter

Rick Pitino has the 2-3 Zone solved. That is obvious. And I know its sacrilege to suggest this but, in the future, should be go man-to-man against the Cardinals? Would that be too insane to think of?

• Louisville's 10-minute blitz sacks Syracuse...Mike Waters
• Baye's hand, CJ's blocks and Pitino's team...Donna Ditota
• Louisville's mastery of Syracuse's 2-3 zone continues...Donna Ditota
• Louisville defense frustrates Jackson; Melo sits after missing practice...Daily Orange
• CARDINAL RULE: Louisville beats SU for 7th consecutive time behind 3-point barrage...Daily Orange
• Cards Win 7th Straight Over Orange; Kuric Awesome...Card Chronicle
• Louisville - Syracuse Postgame Reactions OR Kentucky Fried Cuse?...Orange44
• Time To Admit Rick Pitino Owns Jim Boeheim...Orange Fizz
• Syracuse-Louisville postgame audio...The Juice Online
• Welcome to the Yuck Center - Syracuse Louisville Observations...Three Idiots on Sports
• Bummer....Cuse Country
• Comeback Attempt Falls Short...CuseOrange
• Louisville extends streak over Syracuse with 73-69 win...Courier-Journal