More than five years ago, Ken Pomeroy concluded that college basketball defenses don’t have much control over their opponents’ 3-point percentage. He found that the optimal way to slow down a 3-point happy team is to minimize the number of looks they get from deep. The fewer opportunities a team gets from 3, one of the most effective and most popular shots in the game, the less likely they are to burn you via the trifecta.

On Saturday afternoon in Syracuse’s (8-1) 72-58 victory over Colgate (3-6), the Raiders launched from deep. SU players said they knew it was coming. And it came in bunches, as the Raiders — whose 11.3 3-point makes per game ranked tied for 10th in the country — attempted 35 3-pointers and hit 14 of them, accounting for 72 percent of their total offensive production. The Orange won by double-digits, but Colgate kept the contest close in the second half because it spread the 2-3 zone to find open shooters.

Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said after the game that Colgate focused almost solely on 3s. One dimensional teams like that, he said, SU will beat. But stopping the 3-point shot against more formidable opponents will be integral for Syracuse’s overall defense come conference play. Because Syracuse will have a size advantage in every game it plays this season, teams will inevitably look to beat SU from behind the arc.

“We didn’t make some rotations,” Boeheim said. “Paschal (Chukwu) was late a couple of times. We didn’t bump a couple of times. They made some good plays. They were determined … They never wanted to score inside. They wanted to get the ball back out. And that’s hard to play against.”

Syracuse’s 3-point defensive woes were on display Saturday, with Colgate putting on a beat-the-zone how-to clinic via the deep ball. Syracuse entered the game ranked just 176th in the country in 3-point percentage defense (34.5 percent), and the Raiders methodically worked the ball around the perimeter, through the high post and to the corners to set up 3s. Many were uncontested.

As reliant on the 3 as they come, Colgate’s small lineup stayed around with SU — no Raider stands taller than 6-foot-9 — because it shot well from 3.

Junior point guard Frank Howard, who scored 18 points and added six assists, said the perimeter defense starts with fellow guard Tyus Battle and himself. Both were slow to push out, Howard said, and they didn’t beat high screens well.

“We can’t get hit and sucked in to put our forwards and bigs in a bad spot,” Howard said. “The forward can’t be too high to give that direct pass.”

On screen-and-rolls and screen-and-pops involving dangerous shooters, such as Colgate’s Jack Ferguson (6-for-12 from deep), Howard said he may be more willing to concede drives and the midrange options, rather than give up an open long-range shot. Syracuse defends the screens differently based on player strengths and the depth of an opponent’s interior personnel, but contesting 3s is a must, he said.

Boeheim said he is willing to let teams try to beat Syracuse from 3 as long as they are not also attacking the inside. That was the case against Colgate, which scored only 10 paint points and attempted only four free throws. Even so, Syracuse players said they know they will have to buckle down on the perimeter in the coming weeks. At the end of the month in the conference opener, the Orange hosts Virginia Tech, the third-most efficient three-point shooting team in the country (45.6 percent). Georgetown, Syracuse’s next opponent, ranks 54th (39.2).

“We can’t just leave people,” Howard said. “We get so focused on certain guys that we kind of leave guys open. Against Kansas we left (Lagerald) Vick in the middle. Just left him. Tonight we left No. 13 (Ferguson) a lot. He floated around, found his spots. We gave them a lot of passing angles.”

During the second half, freshman forward Oshae Brissett, who scored 20 points, didn’t extend out to a shooter in the corner. Boeheim sprung from his seat, said “No!” and flailed his hands as Colgate pulled to within nine with seven minutes on the clock. Later, Colgate’s Sean O’Brien, who went 3-for-7 from distance, drilled a corner 3 off of a skip-pass from the top of the wing. Nobody was there to contest the shot. The Raiders cut Syracuse’s lead to seven with 5:45 to go.

Assistant coach Allen Griffin said Syracuse players can become more active, especially the bigs. He and Boeheim said Chukwu doesn’t have the quickness that Bourama Sidibe has, but Sidibe did not play due to a minor injury. He should be back within a two to three days, Boeheim said. When he returns, Syracuse’s defense will be significantly improved because Sidibe jumps out to corner shooters faster than Chukwu.

“It’s hard because they have to cover so much,” Griffin said. “That’s why we have the center going out a little more this year than in other years. Teams are getting more sophisticated when they’re attacking zone. We just have to figure out what we need to do. We need to be more active. If we’re more active, we can get to their shooters better.”

Published on December 9, 2017 at 6:17 pm

Contact Matthew: mguti100@syr.edu | @MatthewGut21