SU backup centers Witherspoon, Day look to fix struggles
Freshman Amber Witherspoon (44) has struggled, along with sophomore Bria Day, to fill in when starter Briana Day isn't on the court. SU's first-string center has been in foul trouble often, and the two bench players will look to improve their production in her absence. Michael Cole | Staff Photographer
Sophomore center Briana Day has been one of Syracuse’s most consistent players this season. Her 10.4 rebounds per game are second in the conference. Her 46 blocks are best on the team.
The only problem is that she can’t be counted on when she’s not in the game, and SU hasn’t found a backup center to fill the void when Day gets into foul trouble. Bria Day, her twin sister, and Amber Witherspoon have been brought off the bench in her place, but neither one has come anywhere close to providing a similar spark.
“What you want to do is contribute and help the team win and when you’re not doing that, it’s challenging,” Bria Day said. “… I don’t want to go in and it not be the same level where it’s like I’m not helping my team, but hurting them.”
And on a guard-heavy team, a drop-off in play in the paint could be devastating for the No. 25 Orange (11-5, 1-2 Atlantic Coast). Briana Day committed four fouls in a game just three times in 13 nonconference games. Yet in three ACC games against bigger, more skilled centers, she’s already been one foul from leaving the game twice and totaled three fouls in the other conference game. As a result, she’s averaging just 24.9 minutes per game this season.
Neither Bria Day nor Witherspoon has been able to pick up the slack. In ACC play, the duo has combined for 2.3 turnovers and 2.3 rebounds in 11 minutes per game, putting a greater importance on Briana Day to stay out of foul trouble.
“She has to (stay out of foul trouble) for us to be able to win,” SU head coach Quentin Hillsman said. “We play with four guards. She’s our only post player in there.”
When Briana Day picked up her fourth foul against then-No. 4 Notre Dame on Jan. 4, the wheels fell off for the Orange. With 17 minutes to go in the game and SU down by five, she subbed out for seven minutes. In that time, the Fighting Irish stretched the lead to 12 points against the reserves with five layups in the paint.
At one point, Hillsman even played 6-foot Taylor Ford, who has the third-most 3-point attempts on the team, at center. While he was going for a smaller lineup, it reflected SU’s struggle to find a reliable option to fill in for Briana Day.
“If there’s a drop-off, I’m not playing my role correctly,” Witherspoon said.
Instead of risking it with the backups four days later, Hillsman played Briana Day for the entire second half against then-No. 13 Duke after giving her just eight minutes in the first. At halftime, SU trailed by eight, but it came back and eventually tied the game with under a minute left in 74-72 loss.
On a team that’s 0-5 against ranked opponents, and in a conference with six of them, backup center is a position that Syracuse can’t afford to continue struggling at.
“Trying not to have a drop off is difficult because it’s like you have to go in and play to a certain level and standard,” Bria Day said. “I think that kind of motivates me to continue to work hard”
