Syracuse trounces Canisius 96-72 in highest-scoring performance of season
Syracuse's offense, including Shy Hawkins' six points, exploded to its highest-scoring game of the season in its win over Canisius Tuesday, moving to 3-0. Eli Schwartz | Staff Photographer
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Through two games, Syracuse’s 2025 season had been characterized by several key themes. The most prevalent, though, is defensive domination.
The Orange allowed 71.4 points per game last season, ranking 318th of 362 Division I teams in that category, per HerHoopStats. SU added eight new players in the offseason, including several that head coach Felisha Legette-Jack said “love to play defense.” It’s shown through two games against lower-quality opponents in Stony Brook and UAlbany.
Tuesday’s opponent, Canisius, entered its matchup with SU as one of the worst offensive teams in D-I, averaging under 40 points per game. While the Golden Griffins had far more success, pushing around Syracuse for 72 points — the Orange countered them with their best offensive performance of the year thus far.
Syracuse (3-0, 0-0 Atlantic Coast) took down Canisius (0-3, 0-0 Metro Atlantic Athletic) 96-72 with a season-high 53.6% field goal percentage for its third straight win. The Orange were led by Laila Phelia’s season-high 22 points, while Dominique Darius pitched in a new career-high with 21 and Uche Izoje tallied 17.
It began on a nearly identical note to Friday’s clash with UAlbany. The Orange allowed the first bucket — which was Canisius’ first time leading a game all season — before two Darius free throws tied it up. From there, the rest of the first quarter was dominated by Syracuse’s defensive tenacity, which resulted in good looks the other way.
The Orange picked up two steals in a row, leading to a Phelia jumper and a Darius layup. Phelia took over with three consecutive buckets, including an and-1, to cap a 13-0 Syracuse run and force a Canisius timeout.
Out of the timeout, Phelia set up Izoje for a layup before Sophie Burrows and Phelia got buckets in the paint.
Canisius’ Shariah Gailes sank two 3-pointers in the frame, but Syracuse dominated from inside the arc. The Orange didn’t attempt a 3 in the first quarter, but they didn’t need to. Twenty points in the paint gave SU a 32-11 lead at the end of the frame. The Orange shot 80% from the field on their first 20 attempts.
In the second quarter, Syracuse warmed up from distance. Angelica Velez canned SU’s first 3-pointer of the evening with over eight minutes remaining in the second. Darius followed it up with another triple on the next possession before sinking back-to-back 2s to extend Syracuse’s lead to 25.
Canisius hung tough throughout the frame, scoring 23 of its 34 first-half points — the most the Orange have allowed in a half this season. The Orange cooled down to close the half, missing their last seven field goals of the frame. Still, they led 53-34.
While Syracuse’s offense did enough to mask its flaws defensively, the Orange still struggled to contain Canisius early in the third quarter. After the Golden Griffins scored on their second possession, Legette-Jack quickly called a timeout. It still couldn’t stop the bleeding.
Canisius eclipsed the 40-point mark for the first time all season with seven-and-a-half minutes to play in the third. The Golden Griffins outscored the Orange 11-9 in the first five minutes of the quarter. They’d shot 60.7% from the field and 60% from 3 at that time, while Gailes led the Golden Griffins with 15 points.
Canisius again won the third quarter, outscoring Syracuse 21-19. The Orange missed their final five field goals of the quarter before Izoje sank a buzzer-beating layup. The Golden Griffins hit five of their last seven shots to trim the deficit to 17.
A Gailes and-1 shrunk the lead to 14 with nine minutes remaining, but it was the closest Canisius got.
With every blow Syracuse took defensively, it delivered one the other way. Phelia knocked down two free throws before Darius teed up Journey Thompson for an easy layup. It helped the Orange eclipsed their previous season-high of 74 points with eight minutes to play.
Darius and Phelia led the Orange the rest of the way. Darius picked up two points at the line before slashing through the lane for a layup. Phelia converted an and-1 right after for her first 20-point game since March 2024. Burrows nailed a 3 on the next possession to extend the lead to 23 and force a Canisius timeout.
It was an advantage the Orange never relinquished. They outscored Canisius 24-17 in the fourth quarter, cruising to a 24-point win.
While Canisius’ 72 points were the most Syracuse has allowed all season, it made up for it on the other end by shooting the lights out. It may not be a sustainable way of winning games, but while the Orange are still ironing things out in nonconference play, it’ll do for now.
