Syracuse thrashes UAlbany 64-45 behind defensive dominance
Syracuse moved to 2-0 on the season with a convincing win over UAlbany on Friday, propelled by Dominique Darius' 13 points and 27 forced turnovers. Zoe Xixis | Staff Photographer
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Felisha Legette-Jack blankly stared forward as she was called on. She was utterly distraught. It was Nov. 20, 2024, and Syracuse had just dropped to 2-3, its worst start to a season since 2021-22.
Even worse, the Orange did it embarrassingly. After leading UAlbany by 10 through one quarter, their advantage shrunk to one at halftime. Then, with 3.5 seconds left, the Great Danes’ Lilly Phillips nailed a corner 3 to hand Syracuse a 73-70 upset defeat.
“I’m gonna say it on record, the better team didn’t win today. The more prepared team won today,” Legette-Jack passionately said following the loss.
Now, a year later, Legette-Jack’s current message reflects that moment — all about preparing and responding. Guard Dominique Darius said after dominating Stony Brook Tuesday that Legette-Jack always looks ahead. Facing UAlbany Friday was SU’s chance to show its growth since last year’s early-season stumble.
The Orange did that and more. On the offensive end, Uche Izoje led the way with 14 points, while Syracuse’s defense shut down UAlbany from tipoff, allowing just 45 points, its fewest since Nov. 7, 2023. It boosted Syracuse (2-0, Atlantic Coast) to a commanding 64-45 win over UAlbany (1-1, America East) to open its season 2-0.
It took time for SU to find its rhythm, though. Through five possessions, the Orange had a turnover and four missed shots. It wasn’t until Darius was fouled just over three minutes in that they gained control.
From there, Darius put Syracuse on her back. After sinking both free throws, she forced a turnover from UAlbany guard Lara Langermann, taking it the other way for an easy layup to give the Orange their first lead. She then recorded an assist on Izoje’s bucket before driving in for one of her own to extend Syracuse’s advantage.
By the first media timeout with 4:55 to play in the first half, Darius’ exhibition performance against Daemen last week — when she recorded zero points and showed little cohesion with backcourt partner Laila Phelia — was a distant memory. She’d recorded six of the Orange’s opening eight points with a rebound, assist and steal.
As Darius was substituted out for Angelica Velez with about three minutes to go in the first, Syracuse had to look to other faces to jumpstart its offense. It continued receiving open looks but couldn’t quite find an answer.
Phelia committed two turnovers, and Sophie Burrows missed an open layup and 3. But SU’s defense fluently contained UAlbany’s offense, holding a dominant 16-4 lead after 10 minutes.
What started as an offensive onslaught turned defensive, continuing into the second quarter. On the Great Danes’ first possession, Delanie Hill — who scored a team-high 20 points in UAlbany’s season opener Tuesday against Marist — attacked the rim, but Keira Scott drew the charge. The momentum remained entirely one-sided.
Even when the Orange did falter defensively, the Great Danes couldn’t make them pay. Halfway through the second quarter, UAlbany was just 1-for-4 on free throws, while Darius kept the hot hand. She nailed her first 3 of the game to give the Orange a 20-7 lead, which ballooned to 27-10 at halftime.
Darius had 13 points, just three away from her 2022 career high (16). It was ascendancy by the break, as Syracuse had forced 15 turnovers and slowed the Great Danes’ offense to zero fast break points.
A 20-minute halftime couldn’t flip the momentum. It did rile up Izoje, though, who took Darius’ mantle as SU’s leading scorer. Standing 6-foot-3 with no one on the Great Danes taller than 6-foot-1, Izoje did whatever she wanted.
She opened the second half with the Orange’s first five buckets, raising her two first-half points to 12 in a matter of minutes. With the ball at the perimeter, Izoje was constantly targeted down low. The Great Danes had no answer.
Izoje’s teammates quickly joined her. Burrows made her first bucket on a fastbreak layup before Journey Thompson went on a personal 5-0 run as the third quarter wound down. The Orange’s lead only expanded, outscoring UAlbany 25-8 in the quarter.
The game was all but over. SU had shot over 40%, grabbed 15 steals and had 11 scorers. The final 10 minutes were about not getting complacent, something former Syracuse guard Georgia Woolley reiterated last year after the Orange’s loss to the Great Danes.
Even though Woolley had departed, the Orange reflected her message. Jasmyn Cooper recorded her first bucket on a difficult fadeaway just inside the perimeter. Velez got going, too, recording a steal and upping her total to 10 points to tie her career high. Once trailing 2-1, SU never looked back.
As Legette-Jack rose to her feet when the clock expired, it was a contradictory scene from a year ago. This time was far from embarrassing. Syracuse had officially prepared and responded, and its improvement was as clear as could be.
