Perhaps the most important play of Syracuse’s season happened before Tuesday night’s tipoff. At some point in warmups, Elijah Hughes, the Atlantic Coast Conference’s second-leading scorer, tweaked his groin. 

For the first two minutes of the game, Hughes tried and failed to contribute on the court, leaving after less than three minutes in noticeable pain. Syracuse didn’t know until the game started that Hughes wouldn’t be healthy enough to play, Boeheim said. 

“That’s a perfect game for (Hughes), they’re a pressure team and that’s where he thrives. Very disappointing not having him tonight,” Boeheim said. 

Without its leading scorer, Syracuse (14-10, 7-6 Atlantic Coast) nearly did the improbable but fell short in a 79-74 loss to North Carolina State (16-8, 7-6) on Tuesday at the Carrier Dome. Many of the necessary requirements of an SU win without Hughes happened. Joseph Girard III led the game with 30 points — the most ever in the Carrier Dome for a SU freshman. Freshman forward Quincy Guerrier added 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.

But Syracuse shot 16.7% from beyond the arc. Buddy Boeheim, who’d scored more than 20 points in five of the last seven games, finished with 10. While the Wolfpack missed seven free throws in the final minute, Syracuse didn’t hit a shot. 

“At the end we had a couple turnovers, couldn’t make a shot and that’s why we lost,” Guerrier said. 

Through the first 23 games of Syracuse’s season, the offense has run through Hughes. The redshirt junior has been the alpha scorer whenever Syracuse has needed one. At second in the ACC in scoring with 19.4 points per game, no Syracuse player spent more time on the court this season than Hughes. 

That changed on Tuesday when Hughes tweaked his groin. With 17:27 left in the first half, Hughes left the game and placed ice on his left groin area while sitting on the Syracuse bench. 

The Orange were in a predicament they’re not often in, Syracuse players admitted. Syracuse’s starting five rarely has to play without Hughes, and the lack of continuity showed.

“When you lose your best player, one of the three of four best players in the league, without being able to practice, it’s difficult,” Boeheim said.

It changed the way NC State played defense as well. The Wolfpack swarmed Buddy, preventing SU from finding him off screens. When the ball did make it out to him, NC State had more freedom to cover Buddy and Girard at the 3-point line with no threat of Hughes. The duo shot all of Syracuse’s 3-pointers on Tuesday and finished a combined three-of-18. 

“We did a decent job today without him in our offense.” Syracuse forward Marek Dolezaj said. “This was a game we were supposed to win and this is going to hurt.”

As Syracuse’s chances at quality wins are constantly slipping, Tuesday presented one of the final games to boost its resume. NC State entered this game ranked 61st in the NET Rankings, four spots ahead of the Orange. Besides upcoming road trips to Florida State and Louisville, the Wolfpack were the highest-ranked team remaining on Syracuse’s schedule and entered the game trailing SU by one conference win. 

Danny Gonzalez | Contributing Photographer

On a night when Syracuse’s offense reached its average points mark without its top scorer, the Orange still needed more and so do their tournament hopes. 

The initial version of Syracuse without Hughes failed to produce offense. NC State ripped off an 8-0 run which featured several Syracuse substitutions for poor offensive play. Two missed 3-pointers from Buddy, then a turnover from Brycen Goodine, led Boeheim to swap the freshman point guards in and out. 

The Wolfpack pressed Syracuse, but the pressure often led to Syracuse baskets. Repeatedly, Guerrier caught the inbound pass near Syracuse’s own baseline and held the ball for a curling Girard. After the handoff, Girard darted down the court. If he had a step on his defender, he drove to the basket and knocked down contested layups or floaters. On consecutive possessions in the first quarter, Girard broke the press and finished an and-1 layup. 

In the latter part of the second half, a time Hughes has taken over for Syracuse in many games this year, Girard locked in. The Glens Falls product who averaged 50 points per game in high school dribbled low as he approached his defender and sized him up. He crossed his dribble right, drove and hit a floater with a hand in his face.

Hughes rose from his seat, applauding and imploring the crowd to scream louder. Girard forced another turnover and drove to the rim once more for two points from the foul line. 

No matter how much Syracuse scored, as impressive as it was without Hughes, the Wolfpack responded. Markell Johnson answered a Girard jumper on one end with a 3-pointer on the other. A few possessions later, this time after two Girard misses, C.J. Bryce hit from deep, and the Wolfpack led by seven as Syracuse called timeout with 2:32 remaining.

Despite no Hughes, NC State’s uncharacteristic 3-point performance, and an off shooting night from Buddy Boeheim, Syracuse still had a chance to pull out a win. The Orange needed just a few more points. A 3-pointer and a layup. A pair of jump shots. Anything to swing control back in the game. But the Orange couldn’t find it. Not in a game without Hughes.

So Syracuse is still searching for something bigger: A marquee win with one less game to find it. 

Published on February 11, 2020 at 9:31 pm

Contact Josh: jlschafe@syr.edu | @Schafer_44