NEW YORK — For the last 4:15 of Friday’s first half, Syracuse didn’t score.

SU’s half concluded with a missed 3 from Tyus Battle, an Elijah Hughes charging foul, a missed 3 from Oshae Brissett, another missed 3 and a giveaway by Hughes in the lane as the buzzer sounded.

Oregon went on a 12-0 run while the Syracuse offense couldn’t put any points on the board. Much like last season, the biggest issue for the Orange became simply making shots.

“When the ball doesn’t go in the basket, it makes things very difficult,” SU head coach Jim Boeheim said. “Very difficult.”

Two days ago, Syracuse was undefeated. The Orange had dispatched two mid-major opponents in the friendly confines of the Carrier Dome. But after Friday evening, two losses in two days to high-major opposition at Madison Square Garden have changed the feel of SU’s early season in less than 24 hours.

The second of the two losses came for No. 15 Syracuse (2-2) at the hands of No. 13 Oregon (3-1), 80-65, in MSG on Friday. It marks the first 2-2 start for the Orange since 1987-88, a span of 31 seasons. SU’s shooting struggles continued, as the Orange finished with a 35.3 shooting percentage, including 17.9 percent from 3-point range. The Orange attempted 28 3s, more than they’d taken in any game last year, and made five.

“We played terrible today. Yesterday we played terrible,” Brissett said. “We can’t let teams out-tough us. We can’t let teams score so easy. We pride ourselves on defense so once that’s not working, offense not working, there’s nothing really to take away from these games.”

Syracuse shot 41.7 percent from the floor a season ago. The offense was stagnant at times, settling for isolation plays or pick and roll after pick and roll late in the shot clock. And even in SU’s two wins to start the season, that offense hadn’t disappeared.

The Orange shot 38.7 percent against Eastern Washington. That rose to 41.2 percent against Morehead State. In Thursday’s loss to UConn, SU shot 39.4 percent from the field. SU’s offensive approach was supposed to be different this season, with sharpshooters Buddy Boeheim and Hughes joining the fray, along with freshman point guard Jalen Carey to push the pace. So far, it hasn’t been.

“When you shoot 5-for-28 (from 3), there’s not much you can say about it,” Boeheim said.

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MORE COVERAGE: 

• Oregon phenom Bol Bol goes off as No. 15 Syracuse’s interior play slides
• Offensive woes and other takeaways from No. 15 Syracuse’s 80-65 loss to No. 13 Oregon

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There were still late in the shot clock jab step and drive attempts by Battle into traffic. There was still Brissett settling for 3-pointers as the timer wound down, even though he didn’t hit any of his five jumper attempts in the first half. And there was still a slow pace getting over halfcourt, even as the SU deficit widened.

Oregon presented a different challenge than Syracuse’s first three opponents: a 2-3 zone. While the Orange is used to that defense, the Ducks play it differently than Syracuse. They matchup more. They look to trap at the top of the defense. The zone forced Syracuse to pass the ball around. There weren’t pick and roll opportunities, or many isolations.

“I think tonight we had good 3s,” Boeheim said. “I’d take those. When you don’t make them, you’re not gonna win too many games playing against zones.”

But ball movement didn’t solve Syracuse’s issues. Much of the passing came just cycling the ball around the perimeter. Rarely did the Orange find a target at the free-throw line or along the baseline. Part of the problem surely came from 7-foot-2 Oregon center Bol Bol, who made any activity in the middle of the Ducks’ zone tricky. He blocked two shots and affected others, seemingly getting pieces of at least two other balls but not getting block credit. But there also wasn’t urgency from Syracuse to try and penetrate or break down the defense.

The ball was thrown down in the short left corner to Paschal Chukwu early in the first half. Perfect for a trap. The Ducks did just that and sent the long-armed Bol to double team. Chukwu had limited space to pass and threw the ball away.

“We tried different sets, different movements, different perimeter things, stepping people out, setting ball screens,” Boeheim said. “All of those things. If the ball doesn’t go in, none of that works.”

The woes extended to non-pressure moments. Twice, Brissett caught the ball behind the 3-point line and paused. Once in the first half and once in the second half, he rushed his feet and traveled before he had put the ball down. Those were part of a miserable day for the Canadian sophomore, who didn’t make a field goal until less than eight minutes remained in the second half. He shot 1-for-9 from 3-point range.

“After looking at (the stat sheet), if I could go back in time, I’d say don’t take any 3s tonight,” Boeheim said.

The caveat, as it’s been all season, is the lack of senior point guard Frank Howard, who hasn’t played yet with an injury. But Carey scored 26 on Thursday, showing for most of that game he’s ready. Battle and Brissett are a year older. Hughes is active after sitting out last season. If nothing else, Syracuse’s offense should be a little better.

But at Madison Square Garden on Thursday and Friday, it looked a lot like last year. With the step up in opposition for the Orange at the 2K Empire Classic, that wasn’t good enough anymore.

“The two teams yesterday and today out-toughed us, and that’s something that we can’t have,” Brissett said. “Coach told us that they were gonna come at us like that, but we kind of took them for granted, and it showed out there on the court.”

Published on November 16, 2018 at 6:38 pm

Contact Billy: wmheyen@syr.edu | @Wheyen3