UNCASVILLE, Conn. — The Syracuse Orange men's basketball team lost 72-52 on Tuesday night in the first exhibition game of the season. The loss to the UConn Huskies at Mohegan Sun Arena doesn't really mean anything, but there were things we could learn from it.
And while I'm aware that what I'm about to say is a one-game overreaction, I do think it's going to be something that we're talking about at multiple points this season.
The Orange aren't built for the half-court offense
I want to be completely fair on this. As I just said above, I know this was one game, in the preseason, against an elite opponent. Things can change as the season goes on – and they should. Furthermore, Syracuse lost transfer guard Aiden Tobiason to injury within the first five minutes of the game and that clearly impacted the offense as well.
That said, I just think half-court offense is going to continue to be an issue for this team as we move through 2026-27.
For starters, it doesn't appear that SU has any players that can truly get to the lane at ease on the perimeter. Ryan Moesch and Garwey Dual both have solid athleticism and are clearly good players, but I don't see them as guys who can routinely break down opposing defenses, at least really good ones. If you can't break down your defender easily, get into the lane and draw help, then it's hard to find wide open shots in half-court sets.
Furthermore: If you can't break down your opponent off the dribble to create wide open shots, then the ball tends to get swung around the perimeter where you end up settling for a contested jumpshot. Well, without Tobiason, the Orange were just 4-of-19 from three-point range. It's a similar problem that we saw a year ago. Nate Kingz was a solid 3-point shooter, but most of the rest of the roster struggled and the team ended up settling for shots they couldn't routinely make too often.
The best course of action
We saw it in this game. The best thing for Syracuse to do is to get out in transition and run the floor. When they run, they can use their overall athleticism to get easy baskets. If it's not an easy basket directly, then they can create a wide open shot by getting the defense scrambling. There are multiple players on this roster that can hit a set jumper that's open, as opposed to a contested jumper within a stagnant half-court set.
Up next
Syracuse will play Siena on Sunday (2 p.m. ET) in the next exhibition. Because of the talent disparity, I would imagine these concerns will look less pronounced. But, I still think they will be an issue at many points in this season.