With 2:33 left in the third quarter, Louisville led by 17 when SU’s Miranda Drummond got fouled and made both free throws. The Orange, despite being down 15, seemed to have a little life.

Following the free throws, UofL came down the floor and fed the ball to Dana Evans, who missed a 3. Gabrielle Cooper came down with the missed shot and flipped the ball to Tiana Mangakahia.

But in a flash, Evans followed her miss to Mangakahia’s hands, poked the ball free, and got two points for the Cardinals.

Roughly a minute later, UofL’s Arica Carter swiped the ball from Chelayne Bailey off an inbounds play and fed star-guard Asia Durr for an easy two. Those small swings, timely shots and defensive adjustments kept No. 4 Louisville (24-1, 10-1 Atlantic Coast) ahead for most of the game against Syracuse (17-7, 5-6) in an 84-77 SU loss, on Sunday afternoon in the Carrier Dome. At a quick glance, both teams played well  — UofL shot 50 percent and SU turned in a 49.1 percent shooting performance — and the Cardinals edged the Orange in just a handful of statistical categories. On Sunday, the small loomed large for Syracuse after the game.

“It was just little things,” Mangakahia said. “They didn’t press us … it was kind of our own mistakes.”

Early in the game, SU made a concerted effort to get the ball to freshmen bigs Amaya Finklea-Guity and Digna Strautmane. The ploy worked, as the two combined for 12 of SU’s 23 first-quarter points.

But in the second quarter, Louisville played more focused, head coach Jeff Walz said, and reinforcing the Cardinals’ defense was size and a tactical adjustment.

“I felt we regrouped after that first quarter,” Walz said.

Louisville’s comparable size, paired with fronting SU’s bigs — moving between them and the ball handler when it appears a pass is coming — kept the ball away from the rim. As a result, Strautmane started hoisting 3s. Despite starting 2-of-3 from behind the arc, Strautmane went 1-of-7 for the rest of the game. She only became a threat again late in the game when off-ball action freed her up for passes while she moved to the rim.

“I just should’ve attacked more,” Strautmane said. “We just should’ve shot our shots and penetrated to the basket.”

Louisville also got a strong contribution from its bench, outscoring SU’s reserves 18-5. Sophomore Kylee Shook had six points, making both her shots. Sophomore guard Sydney Zambrotta scored eight, going 2-of-3 from deep.

Zambrotta positioned herself in the corner in front of the SU bench late in the first half. As Durr brought the ball down the court she fired it to Zambrotta and told her to, “Knock it down, Syd.”

That 3 with 1:38 until the break, pushed UofL’s lead to six points amid a mini five-point outburst. With five seconds left in the half, after Drummond had just hit a layup, Zambrotta was left open in the corner again and made SU pay.

“Other people had double-digit points,” Cooper said, “points off the bench. … You can’t let someone else come through and pick up their own points.”

With inconsistent options down low and a lack of output from the bench, SU found itself in a big hole in the second half. It would need some type of run to cut into an 18-point Louisville lead. Every time SU strung some baskets together, Durr answered.

A six-point run in the middle of the third quarter got ended by a Durr 3. A five-point run early in the fourth quarter was ended by a Durr 3. Another six-point run, this time Syracuse’s last gasp with 4:24 left, was ended by a Durr 3.

“She’s just a fantastic player,” Hillsman said of Durr, who finished with a game-high 27 points, “and she can just really get a basket from all spots of the floor.”

The steals UofL nabbed on inbound passes late in the third quarter weren’t aberrations from the Cardinals’ general body of work Sunday. They finished the game with 12 steals.

Several thefts came on held balls, usually when Syracuse would grab a rebound from a Louisville miss and feed it to a guard, usually Mangakahia, who finished the game with 10 giveaways. While she surveyed the floor, a UofL straggler would pounce, using precise hands to grab the ball and avoid a foul.

It was the same story contesting shots, an area Louisville excelled at without fouling. Rarely in the game did SU get a look at the rim without a pair of hands getting to the ball or altering the shot.

“They were getting hands on balls,” Cooper said. “Little picks here, little there. Little tips, deflections and it was just making a difference in the game.”

After the game when Hillsman addressed the media, he joked about how he had the same old things to say. Louisville is a great team, he said, and that he’s proud of how hard his team played.

But on a night when both teams played well enough to win, Louisville found an edge.

“That’s why they’re 24-1.” Hillsman said. “They make plays and don’t let you off the hook.”

Published on February 4, 2018 at 5:03 pm

Contact Andrew: aegraham@syr.edu | @A_E_Graham