Syracuse women’s basketball falls to No. 6 Michigan 81-55 for season’s 1st loss
Syracuse struggled from the field and on the glass Sunday against No. 6 Michigan, marking the Orange's first loss of the season after starting 5-0. Courtesy of SU Athletics
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Syracuse’s 2025 season couldn’t have got off to a much better start through five games. Contrary to last season, the Orange cruised through their initial nonconference games with ease.
It’s already apparent this team is better than the one SU fielded last season, which went 12-18 in the program’s worst year under Felisha Legette-Jack. But the question was never whether the Orange can beat up smaller schools. Legette-Jack gets paid to win the big ones.
Syracuse proved it can contend with Power Four teams in Friday’s 61-49 win over Utah. But Sunday’s matchup with No. 6 Michigan brought a different challenge.
Aside from a narrow loss to No. 1 UConn Friday, the Wolverines trounced their first four opponents of the season, including a blowout win over then-No. 24 Notre Dame. SU hadn’t seen a comparable animal since a 30-point loss to then-No. 11 Duke last February.
The inexperience showed, as the Orange (5-1, 0-0 Atlantic Coast) were crushed by No. 6 Michigan (5-1, 0-0 Big Ten) 81-55 Sunday in their second and final game of the Invesco QQQ Women’s Showcase. SU never led in the game.
Syracuse was outrebounded 46-32, its most lopsided game on the glass this year. While Laila Phelia led SU with 13 points, the Orange shot just 28.8% from the field, by far its worst mark in a game this season. While SU attempted a season-high 22 3s, it made just six of them.
It didn’t help that Syracuse got off to a slow start. It didn’t score until four minutes into the quarter and started 0-for-5 from the field. While the Wolverines went just 2-of-8 in that span, their four offensive rebounds helped them take a 4-0 lead through three minutes.
A tough 2 from Phelia broke the drought before the teams began trading buckets. Te’yala Delfosse nailed two 3s to put Michigan up 12-6 with three minutes remaining in the quarter.
SU then finished the frame 0-for-8 from the field with three turnovers, allowing the Wolverines to close the frame on a 11-0 run. They led 20-6 after one, while Syracuse shot 2-of-15 overall.
The Orange went over five minutes without a bucket before an Uche Izoje layup made it 23-8 a minute into the second. It sparked a brief 7-0 run capped with a snatch-back 3-pointer from Dominique Darius to cut the lead to 10 at the media timeout.
From there, though, SU cooled down. The Orange missed their next three shots, allowing Michigan to settle back in. Olivia Olson made a putback layup before Syla Swords drove to the cup for another, which forced a timeout from Legette-Jack.
The Wolverines closed the quarter on an 11-8 run, primarily through their work on the offensive glass. Michigan tallied eight offensive boards in the frame to Syracuse’s one. It allowed them to enter the half up 38-21.
Syracuse couldn’t stop the bleeding in the second half. Michigan produced an 11-5 run, backed by a Mila Holloway triple. It led by 24 at the first media timeout of the quarter after Delfosse drained another 3 and hit a layup.
By the next stoppage, it extended that to 28. Syracuse started the quarter 3-of-10 from the field, while the Wolverines came out blazing hot at 9-of-13. The Orange stopped some of the bleeding with back-to-back buckets by Darius and Izoje, but Michigan seemingly had an answer every possession. It led SU 64-39 at the end of the third.
The 25-point deficit was far too much to surmount in the final 10 minutes. In fact, the Wolverines extended it to as much as 33 at the 6:51 mark after two triples from Olson and Alyssa Crockett.
One of the few silver linings for Syracuse was its fourth-quarter shooting. Phelia canned two 3s before Olivia Schmitt followed it up with one of her own. They contributed three of SU’s four made field goals in the quarter, but the Wolverines still won the frame 17-16 and closed the game out strong with a 26-point win.
It shouldn’t necessarily be called a reality check for the Orange, who’ve already had a few wake-up calls along their five-game win streak, but it displayed the gap that still lies between Syracuse and where it wants to be.
It’s clear the Orange have grown since last season. But Sunday’s thrashing shows SU still has a ways to go to contend with the best squads in the country.
