Three takeaways from Syracuse’s win over Cornell

The Syracuse Orange made it closer than it had to be, but they found a way to move to 5-2 on the season with a 63-55 win over the Cornell Big Red. Cornell got hot from deep late in the second half to take the lead, but Tyus Battle and Oshae Brissett were able to make a few big shots to help Syracuse hold on to the win.

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This is the Tyus Battle we want to see

Tyus Battle got the Orange going to start the game with nine points prior to the under 12-minute media timeout. After getting an easy two off of the tip, Battle remained active on offense, looking for his pull up jumper.

Battle finished with 14 points in the first half, 26 overall, as his aggressive offensive play helped Syracuse take control of the game. Battle isn’t always going to be able to rely on his jumper, but the Orange need their leading scorer to look for his shot early and often if they want to reach their peak potential.

Great three-point shooting teams are going to succeed against the Orange

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Cornell may not have gotten the win, but they were able to carve up Syracuse’s zone, as the Orange gave up way too many open threes in this one. Syracuse had a few defensive lapses throughout the game, where an extra pass from the Big Red was able to generate an open three. The Big Red shot 4-9 from deep in the first half, 9-24 overall, but it was the kind of shots they were getting, not whether they were going in, that prompted coach Jim Boeheim to angrily remove his jacket in the first half.

Syracuse’s zone was successful in terms of generating shot clock violations against the Big Red, but they need to tighten up the perimeter of the zone if they want to come out victorious against the nation’s best perimeter shooting teams.

Oshae Brissett needs to live around the rim

Brissett hit some big threes to help stop a few Cornell runs, but it was the sophomore’s ability to get to the free throw line that helped the Orange get the win. Brissett finished the game with 19 points, and seven of those came from the charity strike.

There aren’t many players who can stay in front of Brissett when he takes the ball off the dribble, so the Orange need him to constantly be looking to get to the rim. In ACC play, look for Brissett to try and get the other team’s bigs in foul trouble by getting the ball inside.