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DULUTH, Ga. — It’s impossible to peer into Felisha Legette-Jack’s mind and imagine what she’s thinking at this current moment. But based on how the last matchup between Syracuse and Cal went, it seems fair to imply she could’ve asked for an easier start to SU’s postseason slate.

After going 22-7 and earning a first round bye in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament, it’s a bit of a tough draw for SU to face a Cal squad that took the Orange to the brink of defeat in their 90-87 triple-overtime win in January.

But a win is a win. In March, Syracuse doesn’t need to worry about style points. It’s all about surviving and advancing at this point. After a dramatic second half where Cal nearly came back from a 21-point deficit, SU did just that.

Here’s some observations from No. 7 seed Syracuse’s (23-7, 12-6 ACC) 70-59 ACC Tournament Second Round win over No. 10 seed Cal (19-14, 9-9 ACC) Thursday:

Suffocating start

Generally speaking, Syracuse has consistently performed the worst in the first quarter. On Feb. 8, the Orange went the first 10 minutes without even making a bucket, getting outscored by the Cardinals 28-6.

They put themselves in a hole they couldn’t overcome and ended up losing that game 84-65 despite outscoring the Cardinals 59-56 over the final three quarters of play. Had SU just gotten off to a better start, it could’ve secured its best win of the season.

Syracuse has seemingly learned from its faults. On Thursday, the Orange suffocated the Golden Bears from the opening buzzer, giving Cal no opportunities to get into the game until late.

On the Golden Bears’ first offensive possession, Dominique Darius jumped into a Cal passing lane to intercept Aliyahna Morris’ delivery, leading to Sophie Burrows’ 3-pointer to open the contest. At that point, it must’ve felt like it was anyone’s game for Cal, down just 3-0 with 39 minutes and 40 seconds left to play.

But it was never going to be its game. Not even close.

Uche Izoje started the game 4-for-4, all from turnaround jumpers in the paint. She led the Orange with eight first-quarter points, powering them to a 23-7 lead through 10 minutes, and finished the first half with 12 points. That seven-point first quarter? That was a season-low for Cal in any frame, let alone the first.

Paired with Laila Phelia, who ignited for 11 points in the first half, Izoje helped SU enter the locker room with a dominant 37-16 lead. Combined, Izoje and Phelia outscored the Golden Bears 23-16 through two quarters. They congested the paint, snagged timely steals and forced Cal to take perimeter shots. A complete game, in all phases.

A jolt of Journey

Most basketball teams have five starters. Syracuse has four — Burrows, Phelia, Darius and Izoje — and an ever-rotating cast of characters in that fifth spot.

For a time, it seemed Shy Hawkins was well on her way to making herself that fifth starter. She’s played in all 29 of Syracuse’s games this season, ranks fifth on the roster with an average of 5.5 points per game and is the only other SU player with double-digit starts, holding 17 heading into Thursday.

But Legette-Jack decided to switch it up to open postseason play. About 12 minutes before the opening tipoff, she released a starting lineup with Journey Thompson in place of Hawkins. It was Thompson’s fifth start of the year, and the senior took full advantage of the opportunity.

Less than three minutes in, Thompson found herself on the board with a layup, giving SU an 11-2 lead. Toward the end of the frame, she cut to the rim, and Izoje found her with an open lane for the easy second-chance layup.

Thompson finished the first quarter with four points, four rebounds and a steal on an efficient 2-of-3 performance from the floor.

It wasn’t all that shocking — her 118.8 offensive rating ranks third on SU’s roster, higher than any of its primary starters. But the last time Legette-Jack tried this gambit, back on Jan. 1 against Florida State, it only ended up limiting Thompson’s ability. This time, she had every opportunity to shine.

Burrows is back. Eh, kinda.

In Syracuse’s regular season finale against Boston College, Sophie Burrows was conspicuously left out of its lineup. A team spokesperson confirmed that Burrows was dealing with a minor hand injury and was being held out of the game as a precaution.

Early on, that hand didn’t look like it was bothering her at all. Burrows was back in SU’s starting lineup against Cal, and she got the Orange on the board first with a 3-pointer from the right wing. On Syracuse’s next offensive possession, Burrows grabbed two offensive boards — one after her own miss — and tipped in a layup to extend the lead to 5-0.

But she didn’t score again in the first half, missing five of the seven shots she took in SU’s first two quarters. She returned quickly in the third quarter with her second triple, which pushed the Orange’s lead back to 20 but went just 1-of-4 from deep in the frame.

Overall, Burrows finished with 13 points and seven rebounds, shooting just 3-of-12 from the field and turning the ball over four times. However, she also hit five late free throws to secure SU’s win.

No one would mistake Thursday for Burrows’ best performance. There have been games where she’s singlehandedly been asked to rescue Syracuse’s offense — like SMU, Miami and Clemson. Those heroics weren’t necessary Thursday.

But really, just having Burrows back and healthy is a positive sign for Syracuse’s postseason hopes. She makes winning plays, and SU is going to need a whole lot of those this March.

Second-half slump

How did the Orange answer what was, arguably, their best half of the season?

Would it surprise you to hear that the answer is one of their worst halves of the season? It really was as if Syracuse and Cal had a “Freaky Friday”-esque body switch, because that’s the only thing that could possibly explain how quickly SU’s fortunes flipped over the game’s final two quarters.

After scoring 15 points off turnovers in the first half, Syracuse scored zero in the third quarter. SU had held Cal to zero points off turnovers in the first half, but as soon as the Golden Bears returned from the locker room, they roared to life with 10 points off giveaways in the third frame.

Midway through that third quarter, Darius collided with Mjracle Sheppard trying to snag an inbound pass. She was whisked away to the locker room and ruled out for the remainder of the contest soon after.

That only compounded the issues SU faced in the frame. Darius wasn’t having her best performance, scoring just two points on 1-of-4 shooting, but her four assists were proof of the pudding. The Orange offense just runs better with her.

Without her presence, Syracuse was forced to rely on Angelica Velez and Olivia Schmitt, who were both incapable of initiating SU’s offense. Cal opened the fourth with a layup from Lulu Twidale that just looked too easy, and it managed to get the lead down to as little as four. But somehow, the Orange held on late.

Published on March 5, 2026 at 7:24 pm
Contact Mauricio: mjpalmar@syr.edu | @mpalmarDO