Observations from Syracuse’s win vs. Stanford: Key efficiency, Shy starts
Shy Hawkins picked up her first start in four games and finished with 10 points on the day, helping SU close out a 69-58 win over Stanford. Tara Deluca | Asst. Photo Editor
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A win is a win, no matter how ugly it comes. Felisha Legette-Jack knows that well. It’s why, after Syracuse’s triple-overtime victory over Cal Thursday, she had nothing but pride when discussing her team’s effort against the Golden Bears.
“The resolute team I got in that locker room,” Legette-Jack began, “they’re gonna do whatever it takes to help us have success, so they can have that joy.”
The Orange were gritty, they were tough, and they did just enough to claim a home victory over a West Coast foe. With Stanford coming to town on Sunday, SU had a chance to do the same, boosting its NCAA Tournament resume with a significant Quad 2 victory over the Cardinal.
SU carried a healthy 37-29 lead into the break on Sunday, and coasted the rest of the way for a 69-58 win against Stanford. Though Laila Phelia’s absence loomed large on Sunday, the Orange were able to gain their sixth Atlantic Coast Conference win.
Here’s some observations from Syracuse’s (16-3, 6-2 ACC) win over Stanford (15-5, 4-3 ACC) Sunday:
Lacking Laila
Laila Phelia hasn’t come off the bench in a single game this season. The shooting guard has arguably been Syracuse’s most dependable player, leading the Orange with an average of 14.2 points per game and scoring in double figures in 15 out of her 18 appearances.
But in the second quarter of Syracuse’s triple-overtime victory over Cal Thursday, SU’s leading scorer landed awkwardly on a midrange jumper, and crumpled to the ground holding her knee. She was taken out for three minutes, but fought to return to the game, and scored 18 points for the Orange in regulation.
Though when the second and third overtimes rolled around, she was nowhere to be found. Phelia watched her team close out the win from the bench, and on Friday afternoon, she was examined by a doctor.
The verdict came back with a lower back injury — per a team spokesperson — forcing her out of SU’s lineup for the first time all season.
Syracuse opted to use a variety of different options in her place, primarily using a mix of Shy Hawkins and Olivia Schmitt. That duo combined to score 12 points on the day — respectable, but still a far cry from Phelia’s 18-point performance against Cal.
Starting Shy
With Phelia’s absence, someone had to take her place in the starting lineup. The onus fell on Hawkins, who returned to the starting five after a brief four-game stint on the bench.
She started eight consecutive games for the Orange from Nov. 30 to Jan. 1, but came off the bench in their 73-58 victory over Wake Forest, and saw her role dwindle since. Given a new lease on life and a chance to cement a spot in the starting lineup, she took full advantage.
After Stanford’s Nunu Agara put the Cardinal ahead with a quick layup, Dominique Darius tried to get SU going with a layup, but missed the shot. Fortunately for Syracuse, Aurora Almón was there to clean up the glass.
Darius got the ball and passed it to Hawkins, who drove to the rim to score the Orange’s first bucket of the game — and her first bucket since SU’s loss to Virginia Tech on Jan. 8 — evening it up at 2-2.
She scored on a midrange shot soon after to cut a 13-10 deficit to one point, and nailed a jumper in the second quarter that pushed Syracuse’s lead to 35-27. Hawkins made five out of her six shot attempts, and her impact wasn’t limited to the offensive end, either, as she snagged four steals on the day.
Dominique deadeye
Darius was never all that proficient from deep range. She has played five college seasons — at UCLA, USC and Syracuse — and has only shot above 30% from three once. She has never averaged at least one triple per game in a season, and entered Sunday shooting just 26.3% on the season from deep.
Don’t ever let anyone tell you it’s too late to change.
On Thursday, Darius hit the game-winning triple to seal SU’s 90-87 win over Cal — arguably the most important triple of its season to date. She carried that confidence into Sunday.
She hit Syracuse’s first 3-pointer of the game less than two minutes into the contest, giving the Orange a 7-4 lead. Then, just five minutes later, she drained another triple late in the first to put SU up 17-15. Her shooting prowess wasn’t just limited to the 3-point arc, either — Darius went 6-for-13 on field goals and made all nine of her free throws.
Darius might not have been a shooter before Sunday. But with Phelia — SU’s best 3-point shooter — out of commission, she’s had no choice but to evolve into one.
Efficiency is key
Legette-Jack doesn’t care too much for efficiency. She has a vested interest in results, no matter how they come. The ugly wins still count the same, even if they aren’t viewed as favorably in the NET rankings.
“Efficiency?” Legette-Jack rhetorically asked after SU’s win over Cal. “You know what, analytics can look at that and say, ‘Oh my gosh, this is terrible.’”
Perhaps they would say that because its efficiency was, in fact, terrible. The Orange attempted 94 shots Thursday, made only 34 of them, and had more shots than points for the first time since Jan. 8, when it shot 60 attempts to finish with 57 points in its loss to Virginia Tech.
Makes are makes, but you’d like them to come easier than that. They certainly did against the Cardinal — SU shot efficiently in all three facets of the game Sunday.
Syracuse’s 46.0% field goal percentage was a significant improvement from its 36.6% mark on Thursday, and the Orange also finished the game shooting 44.4% from deep and 79.2% from the charity stripe. Most importantly, they made 13 of their 16 free throws in the fourth quarter — a big reason why their lead didn’t disappear this time around.
