Complementary offense leads Syracuse women’s basketball to a win over Howard

Syracuse women’s basketball picked up a much-needed bounce-back win over the Howard Bison in the Dome today, 78-62. After scoring only 55 points versus Michigan last weekend, Syracuse’s complementary offense controlled the tempo of most of this game to beat the Bison.

However, it wasn’t all glitz and glamour for the home side.

The Orange did not start well in this contest, scoring only seven points in the first three and a half minutes. Head Coach Felisha Legette-Jack felt that it was uncharacteristic of her players to come out of the game this way.

“I thought we were being disrespectful,” Legette-Jack said. “[You had] one chance to show one kid that came to the game for the first time what it looks like to play women’s basketball. That kid could have left.”

For the kids who stayed around, they saw an Orange squad that shone offensively.

The Orange began to impose its will through its ball movement. Junior guard Angelica Velez had eight of the Orange’s first 10 assists and controlled much of the tempo of the Orange attack through her ball movement. Velez felt that her goal was to make things fast and efficient for her teammates.

“We like to play with pace,” Velez said. “I think that’s what we were focusing on today, and they were just getting a shot.” 

Velez finished with nine of SU’s 23 assists so far in a game this season. This number is the most that Velez has had in a game this season. Legette-Jack felt that in a time when things looked murky, a leader stepped up in Velez.

“She definitely steadied the ship,” Legette-Jack said. “She was pushing pace. Her effort was there. The energy was there.”

SU guards Sophie Burrows and Dominique Darius also helped spread the ball. The two finished with a combined nine assists on the day. Legette-Jack feels that Burrows adds a lot to this team that goes unnoticed.

“She’s doing everything in the dark she’s supposed to do,” Legette-Jack said. “She’s just flying around defensively. She’s communicating with what we’re running.”

Four of Syracuse’s rotation finished with double-digits in points. Freshman center Uche Izoje led the way with 20 points. Senior guard Laila Phelia finished with 14 points, and senior forward Journey Thompson also joined her two teammates in the double-digit point column with 12 points. Sophomore guard Shy Hawkins finished with ten on the day. 

Legette-Jack loves the depth that her roster provides.

“I like that we got choices,” Legette-Jack said. “We don’t have a go-to player. We have a go-to team.”

Syracuse women’s basketball returns to action against Auburn in the SEC/ACC challenge this Wednesday. The Orange have never beaten the Tigers in their history. These two sides have not met since 2004, when Auburn beat SU 48-35. SU certainly knows that while wins are nice, there’s room for improvement.

“This game shows a lot that we can work on in practice,” Thompson said. “It’s definitely nice to be 6-1 versus last year, but there’s still a lot of improvement that we have.”