Syracuse (3-0) defeated Stony Brook (0-3), 78-60, Friday night to win its first road game of the year.

The Orange got off to a blazing 15-2 start over the first five minutes of the game. In that time frame, Brittney Sykes scored seven points, and the Orange forced nine turnovers.

But the Seawovles started pulling back into the game. Back-to-back 3s by Kori Bayne-Walker brought the deficit to under 10. By the end of the first quarter SU held just a six-point lead. Midway through the second quarter, SBU cut it to four.

“They just started making shots,” Syracuse head coach Quentin Hillsman said. “It’s kind of one of those things where you blow the game right open, or you have a game like you had where they play tough.”

Going into the break, the Orange led by 10. Coming out of halftime, however, SU went on a 17-5 run in the first six and a half minutes of the quarter to open up a game-high 22 point lead.

Despite the large margin of victory, Syracuse didn’t play as well as it has in its first two games this season. The Orange tied Stony Brook in rebounds with 34 and had just 11 assists, two fewer than the Seawolves.

The Orange made only six 3s after making more than 10 in each of the first two games.

SU also had just 10 steals after averaging 25 over the first two games. But the Orange still forced 34 turnovers. Most weren’t live-ball turnovers either, yet Syracuse still scored 36 points off of those turnovers.

Even when leading late, the Orange didn’t relent. Up by 14 with 4:40 left in the game, SU forced another turnover via a five-second violation under its own basket when it plugged up all of the passing lanes.

“We just kept our pressure up,” Hillsman said. “We just did what we do every night.”

In Syracuse’s toughest matchup yet, its defensive pressure helped it come away with the victory.

Published on November 18, 2016 at 10:56 pm

Contact Tomer: tdlanger@syr.edu | @tomer_langer