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Syracuse University
Cincinnati
Defense Dominates in 67-52 Win Over Cincinnati
1/15/2011 12:48:29 PM | Men's Basketball
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SYRACUSE, N.Y. - A strong defensive showing led 4/4 Syracuse (18-0, 5-0) to a 67-52 victory against 25/rv Cincinnati (16-2, 3-2) on Saturday afternoon at the Carrier Dome. The Orange held the Bearcats to 18-of-59 (.305) from the field and limited Cincinnati to 21 second-half points in the victory.
A crowd of 24,338 was on hand in the Dome for the win. It represented the largest on-campus college basketball crowd of the 2010-11 season.
Senior forward Rick Jackson led the Orange with his 11th double-double, a15-point and 11-rebound, performance. Redshirt junior guard Scoop Jardine added 11 points while directing the offense with seven assists and sophomore guard Brandon Triche rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points, three assists and a pair of rebounds.
Syracuse had a commanding advantage around the basket, outrebounding the Bearcats, 41-28, and outscoring the visitors in the paint, 30-10.
The Orange shot 56.3 percent from the floor in the win, while restricting the Bearcats to 30.5 percent shooting. Cincinnati was able to remain within striking distance through the majority of the contest due in part to its 11 three-pointers.
Syracuse opened the scoring with nine unanswered through the first 3:44 while holding Cincinnati without a field goal attempt through the first 2:15. The Orange built its lead to 15, 18-3, while limiting the Bearcats to a single field goal through the first 8:48. Jackson and Jardine each had six points in the run while Kris Joseph, Triche and Baye Moussa Keita each added a pair.
Cincinnati kept pace from behind the arc, netting seven trifectas to cut the deficit to 29-25, with 3:34 remaining in the first half. Triche contributed back-to-back buckets to increase the buffer, 33-25, before Dion Dixon converted two three-pointers to make it 33-31. #C.J. Fair# added a bucket with two seconds to go before the break, giving Syracuse a 35-31 lead at halftime.
The Orange defense opened the second half in similar fashion, holding the Bearcats scoreless through the first 7:15 while building its lead with 16 straight points. Triche and James Southerland each had five points in the run while Fab Melo added four.
Trailing, 55-37, Cincinnati used a 9-2 stretch to cut the Syracuse lead, 57-46, with 6:30 remaining in regulation. The Orange answered with five-straight, capped by a one-handed breakaway dunk by Dion Waiters.
SU maintained its advantage through the end of regulation, cruising to a 67-52 win.
Syracuse is off to the second-best start in school history with 18 consecutive triumphs. The 1999-00 squad was 19-0 to open the campaign.
Syracuse hits the road to face 5/5 Pittsburgh on Monday, January 17 at 7:30 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN as part of its Big Monday coverage.
