The warmup is done, and Syracuse is about to find out a lot more about itself.
After opening with a 74-58 win over New Haven and then rolling past Central Connecticut State 102-49, the Orange head to Indianapolis on Monday for Gerry McNamara’s first Power Five and Quad 1 test. Indiana is unbeaten, too, but the Hoosiers have done it against a soft early slate, winning both games by 20-plus points without facing much resistance.
Syracuse and Indiana will meet in Gainbridge Fieldhouse with the Orange carrying a 2-0 record and the Hoosiers sitting at 2-0 as well. The all-time series leans Syracuse’s way, 6-1, and KenPom gives Indiana a 69% chance to win with a projected score of 76-71.
The last time these teams met turned into a wild one.
On Nov. 30, 2021, Syracuse hosted Indiana in the JMA Wireless Dome and jumped out to an 18-point lead in the first half.
That cushion disappeared in the second half, and the game needed overtime, then a second overtime, before the Orange finally escaped with a 112-110 win. Trayce Jackson-Davis tied it at 88-88 with two free throws at the end of regulation, Joe Girard III missed a 3-pointer that sent the game to a second overtime tied 97-97, and Girard later knocked down two free throws to seal it.
Buddy Boeheim led Syracuse with 27 points and eight assists.
Indiana’s roster looks very different now under Darian DeVries, who is in his second year and had to rebuild almost from scratch. The Hoosiers lost Tucker DeVries, Lamar Wilkerson, Tayton Conerway and Conor Enright, but DeVries found answers in the transfer portal.
Markus Burton, Notre Dame’s former All-ACC point guard, is the headliner. Around him, Indiana added Aiden Sherrell, who is averaging 10.5 points and 6.0 rebounds after starting at Alabama last season, Darren Harris, who leads the Hoosiers with 15.0 points per game, and Bryce Lindsay, who is putting up 14.5 points per game off the bench after starting at Villanova a year ago.
That depth is already showing. Indiana has a nine-man rotation, and five players are scoring in double figures. That makes the Hoosiers a tough team to completely bottle up.
For Syracuse, the path starts inside.
Indiana is averaging 38.0 rebounds per game, which ties for 179th nationally, and Sherrell leads the team on the glass with just 6.0 boards per game. Syracuse, meanwhile, is averaging 42.5 rebounds, powered by Sadiq White Jr.’s 10.0 and Gavin Doty’s 9.0. The Orange also need Luke Wilson to keep building after his 14-point showing against Central Connecticut State, especially against Indiana big man Samet Yiğitoğlu, who previously played at SMU.
The other key is ball security. Syracuse is averaging only 6.5 turnovers per game, with no player above 1.5, while Indiana is at 11.5 giveaways per game. Against a Hoosiers offense that has topped 90 points in both games, every possession matters.
One number jumps out from Indiana’s first two games: opponents have blocked just one of its shots.
Maybe that says something, maybe it doesn’t. Eastern Illinois and Bellarmine both rank in the bottom 80 of KenPom, so the early schedule hasn’t offered much of a test. Still, it’s enough to note that Indiana is tied for ninth nationally in that category.
The player Syracuse fans may know best is Burton. The former Notre Dame guard has already faced the Orange twice in his career and scored 28 points in both games.
But his role has shifted at Indiana. He was the centerpiece at Notre Dame, where he averaged 19.1 points per game, while this season he’s been asked to facilitate more than carry the scoring load.
His usage rate has dropped from over 30.0% at Notre Dame to 19.1% at Indiana, and he’s averaging 10.5 points through two games. Even so, his 4.5 assists per game show he can still steer an offense without piling up points.
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Garrett Angeli moved the ball well enough at times, finishing with 263 passing yards and a late touchdown, but two turnovers loomed over the night, including a fumble returned for a score and an interception in the end zone. Ahmad Miller was a bright spot again, carrying 20 times for 101 yards for his third 100-yard game in four weeks, another sign that Syracuse found some answers on the ground even as the overall result left the offense with plenty to clean up. [Read more 🡒]