Battle, Hughes Lead Orange Past Morehead State

Saturday, November 10

Syracuse, NY

7:00 p.m.

Syracuse University

2-0

Morehead State

1-2

Morehead

Syracuse

11/10/2018 9:37:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Highlights Jim Boeheim Press Conference Oshae Brissett Interview Jalen Carey Interview Photo Gallery Player Quotes - Morehead State Head Coach Jim Boeheim Quotes - Morehead State

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – A pair of 20-point performances from Tyus Battle and Elijah Hughes led No. 16/14 Syracuse (2-0) past Morehead State (1-2), 84-70, Saturday night at the Carrier Dome. The contest was the Orange's second of the 2K Empire Classic.

Battle finished the night with a team-high 23 points followed by Hughes' career-high of 21. The duo both shot 7-of-15 (46.7 percent) from the field. Hughes notched a personal-best eight rebounds while matching his career-best mark of six free throws.

Oshae Brissett and Paschal Chukwu each recorded double-doubles for Syraucse. Brissett's 17 points came with a game-high 12 rebounds. Chukwu contributed 14 points, 10 rebounds and six blocked shots in the victory.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Morehead State shaved Syracuse's six-point, half-time margin to three on three different occasions in the first four minutes of the second half. With the Orange clinging to a 43-40 advantage, Syracuse went on a 12-0 run. The dominant stretch was keyed by seven points from Hughes. Syracuse maintained its lead for the remainder of the contest.

FIRST HALF FIRING
The Orange jumped ahead early, 7-0, on baskets from Hughes, Brissett and Chukwu. Hughes took advantage of a Morehead State turnover for his second basket of the night but the Eagles quickly responded with one on the other end. Chukwu snatched his second offensive rebound before laying in a basket giving the Orange an 11-4 lead. Brissett recorded back-to-back three-point plays as Syracuse went up 17-6. Through the first 10 minutes of play, the Orange made 10-of-18 from the field. Brissett scored 12 points during that span.

EAGLES TRY TO CLAW BACK
With a 14-point, 25-11, lead early in the first half, the Orange looked to have a strong hold on the game. In a little over three minutes, Morehead State notched four-consecutive baskets that resulted in a 10-0 run. It cut the Morehead State deficit to three, 25-21. A three-pointer from Hughes interrupted the run, but Morehead State responded with a layup followed by a pair of free-throws. The Eagles plucked the rebound off a missed jumper from 'Cuse, shrinking the Orange's lead to one, 28-27, on a layup. Morehead State had two chances at the line to take the lead but missed both set of free throws. The Orange shut down the comeback attempt, ending the half on a 6-2 scoring run.

COACH BOEHEIM'S THOUGHTS
"I think we learned a lot tonight, I think it's a good learning experience for us. And we move on."

OF NOTE

14 of Brissett's 17 points came in the first half.
Syracuse outscored Morehead State from the foul line, 25-7. The Orange made 25-of-30 (.833) while the Eagles finished 7-of-12 (.583). Battle led the Orange with a 9-of-10 performance.
Both teams ended the night with similar shooting percentages: Syracuse made 28-of-68 (.412) while Morehead State hit on 28-of-70 (.400).
For the second-straight game the Orange won the battle at the boards. Syracuse out-rebounding the Eagles, 51-37.
The defensive effort was led by eight blocked shots, including six from Chukwu
The Orange started the same five for the second-straight game – Hughes, Brissett, Chukwu, Buddy Boeheim and Battle

UP NEXT
Syracuse will finish the 2K Empire Classic with a pair of games next week at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The first game is against Connecticut on Thursday, Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. The second game will be against Iowa or Oregon on Friday, Nov. 16 at either 4:30 or 6:30 p.m.