Four takeaways from Syracuse basketball’s 74-62 win over Oakland

The Syracuse Orange men’s basketball team got back into the win column on Wednesday night, taking down the Oakland Grizzlies by a final score of 74-62. The Orange moved to 6-5 on the season after the win and will have two more games before officially entering ACC play.

Elijah Hughes led Syracuse in scoring with 23 points on 5-10 shooting from deep while freshman guard Joe Girard scored 20 points and dished out 7 helpers. Buddy Boeheim scored 14 points and Bourama Sidibe hauled in 13 boards.

Here are our takeaways from the game.

Jim Boeheim 4-0 all-time against Greg Kampe

As many who frequent this site know full well: Boeheim is the longest tenured basketball coach in college hoops. Oakland head coach Greg Kampe is third in that regard, trailing only Boeheim and Mike Krzyzewski.

Boeheim and Kampe have squared up against one another four times. Boeheim had edged Kampe in all four.

Photo by Bryan Bennett/Getty Images

Short Rotation

Jim Boeheim went eight deep in the first half against Oakland, but did not make a substitution until after the second media timeout. Quincy Guerrier, Howard Washington and Jesse Edwards got some run in the first, but only Guerrier returned in the second half.

In a game that was close throughout, Boeheim tightened his rotation after the break. Junior forward Marek Dolezaj played some center, too, as Sidibe was in foul trouble.

As for the Syracuse bench: Guerrier played the wing in the second half, but neither Washington or Edwards returned after the half.

Desolate Dome?

Syracuse was 5-5 coming into the night against Oakland. With inclement weather in central New York and an 8 p.m. mid-week tip close to the holidays, the crowd size left much to be desired.

Boeheim wasn’t bashful when it came to sharing his thoughts on that matter.

Vegas Knows

Syracuse opened as a 12-point favorite against Oakland. You can live with a push, but I hope nobody had Syracuse -12.5...

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