Uche Izoje’s career-high 23 points boost SU to blowout win vs. Mercyhurst
Uche Izoje scored a season-high 23 points and added 11 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season Friday. Courtesy of SU Athletics
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The last time Syracuse had a freshman center like Uche Izoje, she went on to play in the WNBA.
Chicago Sky center Kamilla Cardoso anchored the Orange’s lineup as a freshman in 2020, starting all of her 23 appearances while leading the ACC in blocks. After her standout season for the Orange, Cardoso transferred to South Carolina, where she won two national championships and was named the nation’s top defensive player as a senior.
Although Izoje has just 12 games under her belt, she’s playing at a similar level to Cardoso for Syracuse this season.
Izoje scored a career-high 23 points to lead SU (11-1, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) to a blowout 106-40 win over Mercyhurst (0-11 Northeast) at the JMA Wireless Dome Friday. The freshman center shot 10-for-12 from the field and also recorded three blocks to spearhead the Orange’s paint dominance.
“I know I got a career-high 23 points this time, but I’m not there yet,” Izoje said. “I want more. I’m looking forward to the big games coming up.”
Behind Izoje, Syracuse exploited its size advantage against Mercyhurst, recording more than twice as many rebounds as the Lakers, with 56 boards compared to Mercyhurst’s 27. Of Izoje’s 11 total rebounds, six were on the offensive glass, matching the Lakers’ total output.
At the rim, Izoje protected the restricted area and forced the Lakers to settle for jumpers and contested layups. With the freshman center patrolling the paint, the Orange held Mercyhurst to just 25% shooting from the field and a season-low 18% from deep.
Syracuse was also able to contest without fouling. It conceded just six free-throw attempts and committed a season-low seven fouls.
Izoje’s three blocks were more than Mercyhurst’s entire team. On the season, she’s now averaging 2.9 blocks per game, pacing SU in that category and rebounds by a wide margin.
Like Cardoso, Izoje also leads the ACC in blocks, 0.5 blocks ahead of Duke’s Toby Fournier (2.4 blocks). After grabbing 11 rebounds against Mercyhurst and upping her season average to 8.3 rebounds per game, Izoje ranks sixth in the ACC in that category and second among freshmen.
As a scorer, Izoje was just as dominant. Of the game-high 23 points she scored, 20 were in the paint, with the other three coming at the free-throw line.
She also helped spark Syracuse’s offense to start the game, scoring 11 of the Orange’s first 25 points as they raced out to an early 25-10 lead.
Including Izoje’s 10 field goals, the Orange scored 62 points in the paint, over three times more than Mercyhurst (18).
Ending with a field goal percentage of 83.3% against the Lakers marked the fourth time Izoje scored in double figures while shooting at least 80% from the field.
“Honestly, I’ll just keep playing the way I play, and I know from now on we’re going to have key meetings,” Izoje said. “I just have to do my best — give my best every time, every day, rebound and on defense.”
The 23-point, 11-rebound performance was Izoje’s second straight game with a double-double after recording 12 points and 14 rebounds in Syracuse’s 72-54 win over Binghamton Tuesday. It was also her third double-double in the last five games. It was also Izoje’s eighth straight seven-rebound performance, dating back to SU’s 61-49 win over Utah.
Izoje credited SU coach Felisha Legette-Jack and her teammates for helping her adjust to basketball in the United States after playing professionally in Japan.
“She helps us a lot,” Izoje said of Legette-Jack. “She’s always motivating, like, ‘Put your head up.’ Having that motivation, you can’t just drop your head, and she keeps pushing positive energy every day.”
While it might be premature to compare Izoje to Cardoso, the freshman center has anchored Syracuse’s defense as a double-double threat every game, just like the current WNBA center did.
Heading into ACC play on a six-game win streak, the Orange will look to continue their streak after finishing 6-12 in conference play last year. To do that, Syracuse will look to Izoje after she’s helped it to an 11-1 start, tying its best under Legette-Jack.
“We’re going to celebrate this,” Legette-Jack said. “We’re going to really enjoy what we’ve done in non-conference, and then come back and get after it.”
