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Ivana Raca had just drilled a jumper to put Wake Forest in front heading into halftime. Quentin Hillsman looked exasperated on the sideline, having exercised every defense — zone, player, man-zone, full-court press and half-court traps. It didn’t matter, and in Syracuse’s third game in five days, the Orange were a step behind. 

All Tiana Mangakahia could do was hurriedly call for the inbounds and charge back down the floor. She blew past a defender, over the block ‘S’ and threw up a two-handed runner from 35 feet away. The ball banked off the backboard and in, giving Syracuse a 38-37 lead heading into halftime of a game it’d been outshot and outrebounded. 

But it was that bucket that gave the Orange a lead it wouldn’t relinquish in a place it’s still yet to lose. Syracuse (10-4, 7-4 Atlantic Coast) improved to 8-0 at home with a 85-78 win over Wake Forest (8-8, 5-7). The Orange overcame sluggish first half defense by ramping up their offense in the second half, led by 17 from Digna Strautmane, who was honored pregame for scoring 1,000 career points. Kamilla Cardoso added her fourth double-double of the season, while guards Mangakahia and Kiara Lewis scored in double figures in the same game for only the fourth time this season. 

“Tonight was just a huge win for us, Hillsman said, “To take care of our home court, and we’re undefeated at home, that feels good.”

Hillsman said earlier this season that Syracuse would be in “great shape,” if it could split its home and road games, adding that winning road games was “like stealing.” Following SU’s third consecutive road loss against Georgia Tech on Tuesday, Hillsman reinforced that the Orange couldn’t afford to let anyone “steal” a game in the Dome. 

But for most of the first half against Wake Forest, Syracuse struggled in keeping the Demon Deacons from doing so. After Cardoso had won the tip, Syracuse’s first offensive possession lasted all of three passes before Strautmane’s pass to Priscilla Williams on the wing was well behind the freshman and out of bounds. 

The Orange ended up scoring first on a Strautmane 3-pointer a couple of possessions later, but the lead was short-lived. Cardoso had a chance to put the Orange up five from the free-throw line, but the 51% free-throw shooter missed both. Syracuse went to full-court press, and Wake’s Jewel Spear sped past SU’s tired legs and kicked to Gina Conti for a tying 3-pointer.

After Lewis’ lay-in put Syracuse back in front, Conti blazed by the Orange for a layup of her own. Hillsman nearly knocked off his glasses as he ferociously yanked off his mask to bark at Williams for slow rotations. 

Digna Strautmane attempts to pass the ball while surrounded by Wake Forest players. Courtesy of Mark Konezny | USA TODAY Sports

The freshman was not alone in the first half. Even though Syracuse succeeded in generating quality looks on offense and ultimately shot 48.5%, Wake Forest had an answer seemingly every time. Hillsman adjusted Syracuse to man after the first media timeout, so, Wake Forest counted with high-ball screens to keep its shooters open. On its first possession, Conti used a pick to gain separation from Taleah Washington for a 3-pointer.

“We were just getting a little tired,” Hillsman said. 

The Demon Deacons would do this multiple times, forcing Hillsman to put his team in a man-zone hybrid. Mangakahia was late coming around a screen at the elbow, then Williams went under another Wake Forest screen, the precursor to another Demon Deacon 3-pointer.

Despite the defensive lapses, Strautmane’s 14 first-half points — including a personal 5-0 run when Wake Forest had the Syracuse defense reeling — kept the Orange in contention. And it set up Mangakahia’s shot at the buzzer to put SU ahead.

“Digna was aggressive right away,” Hillsman said. “So that was the difference in the game, just how aggressive she was immediately.” 

In the second half, Mangakahia ensured Syracuse’s one-point halftime lead was more indicative of a slow start than foreshadowing a nail-biter. She was assertive on offense, taking nine shots while dishing out five assists. She left toward the end of the third quarter due to breathing problems, Hillsman later said, but she returned midway through the fourth.

The offense continued to click without its point guard on the floor, though. Lewis controlled the tempo and got to the basket at will. After a gritty bucket in the paint for Wake Forests’ Raca to cut the deficit back to five, Lewis set up the Syracuse frontcourt before muscling past her one-on-one for a left-handed layup plus the foul. 

On the following possession, she got right back to the basket, and a foul put her on the free-throw line. While the senior missed both, she got the rebound on her miss and reset the Orange offense before rifling a line drive high above the Wake defense to a towering Cardoso for the layup, pushing SU’s lead to 69-59. 

“I probably had one of my most efficient games all season,” Lewis said. “That just helps me build my confidence.”

The Demon Deacons called four timeouts in the final minute as well to slow the game and disrupt SU’s composure. The Orange aided Wake’s efforts by missing six of their final 10 free throws, and the Demon Deacons were able to narrow the deficit to four. But Lewis shook her one-for-five start from the charity stripe to ice the game with two makes.

The same player who missed two critical free throws in a road loss to Georgia Tech two days ago connected at home, giving SU another victory at the place where it’s consistently won.

Published on February 4, 2021 at 8:11 pm

Contact Tim: tnolan@syr.edu