After Syracuse won its first two conference games of the season, the Orange (11-5, 2-1 Atlantic Coast) suffered another setback in a 73-59 loss to Georgia Tech (10-6, 2-1) on Saturday inside the Carrier Dome. The SU offense was unable to beat the Yellow Jackets’ defense that entered the matchup ranked 16th in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom, while the defense was unable to stop Georgia Tech from dominating in the paint.

Here are the superlatives from the loss:

The Big Moment: James Banks III’s poster dunk on Elijah Hughes

With just under two minutes left in the first half and Syracuse up three, a loose ball led to a scrum with players battling for possession. The ball found Curtis Haywood II who quickly passed the ball inside to an open James Banks III. He rose and slammed it over Elijah Hughes, who fouled him on the play, giving an and-1 for the junior forward. Banks III made the free throw to tie the score, shifting momentum to Georgia Tech as the Yellow Jackets would never trail the rest of the way.

Stud: Jose Alvarado

One year ago, Alvarado finished 1-for-8 in a win over Syracuse. But with several key pieces leaving the Yellow Jackets, Alvarado was tasked with leading the Georgia Tech offense in his sophomore year. Alvarado had just six points in the first half, but two quick corner 3s early in the second half helped the 6-foot guard reach double digits. There was nothing SU could do to stop Alvarado, who finished the game with 19 points on 5-of-6 shooting, including a perfect 3 for 3 from beyond the arc.

Dud: Syracuse offense

There was nothing Syracuse’s offense could do against Georgia Tech’s stout defense. One of the worst 3-point shooting teams in the country kept chucking and kept missing. Oshae Brissett finished the first half scoreless, and no player could pull the Orange out of the second-half hole they dug themselves into. Nearly 28 minutes into the game, SU had just 33 points. Syracuse finished the game shooting 31.6 percent from the field and 21.2 percent from 3. Despite shooting 45.8 percent from inside the arc, SU kept relying on the 3-point attempts. Its big 3 of Tyus Battle, Brissett and Hughes, meanwhile, combined for just 38 points on 11-of-34 shooting. In short, Syracuse was a game to forget for the Orange offense.

Highlight: Buddy Boeheim’s back-to-back 3s

With Syracuse down 16 and desperately looking for any sort of scoring, the Orange found it from an unlikely source: Buddy Boeheim. The freshman point guard has struggled all season, but he made two 3s down the stretch. The first came from the right corner and, after an Alvarado turnover, Buddy nailed one from the right wing to cut the lead to 10. That 3 tied his career high — 3 in a game — and provided a quick boost of offense on a night Syracuse couldn’t buy a basket. The Carrier Dome had never been louder on Saturday night than following Boeheim’s back-to-back 3s, a glimmer of hope for a sputtering SU team.

Lowlight: Interior Defense

There were always worries about whether or not Marek Dolezaj could keep up with bigger, stronger centers in ACC play. He held his own in the first two conference games of the season, but on Saturday, Georgia Tech’s big men dominated. Dolezaj often guarded Abdoulaye Gueye, who at 6-foot-9 and 217 pounds, outweighed the SU center by 37 pounds. Gueye forced his way into the paint using a variety of hook shots and other post moves to create enough separation for easy shots. The other big man, 6-foot-9, 243-pound forward James Banks III, was also a force. The duo combined for 26 points on 11-of-17 shooting, as Georgia Tech outscored the Orange inside the paint 36-16. Gueye left the game with an injury with 15:54 left in the game, but that didn’t slow down the Yellow Jackets.

Published on January 12, 2019 at 8:23 pm

Contact Charlie: csdistur@syr.edu | @charliedisturco