That's why he was pleased after his team's 61-45 victory Monday night over Longwood. It wasn't the prettiest offensive performance, although BSU scored the ball much better in the second half. But the Cardinals' defense was a constant throughout.
"That's been the . . .
Turnovers plagued EMU through the first half, as the Orange forced Eastern into 12 first half turnovers, posting 16 points off of those miscues. Offensively, Syracuse was dominant in the opening frame, shooting 59.4 percent from the floor, while connecting on eight triples in 14 attempts, good for a 57.1 percentage. Despite forcing Cuse into eight first half turnovers, EMU was unable to convert, grabbing just four points off of the flip flops.
Over the final nine minutes of the first half, the Orange reeled off four triples, extending the first half lead to 26, when SU's Tyus Battle connected on a one-handed three point shot as the shot clock expired with 33 seconds on the clock. Dajuan Coleman closed out the first half scoring with a dunk at the eight second mark to send the game into the break at 52-24.
The second half was much of the same, as the Orange opened up the half with an 18-7 run in the first six minutes of action, taking a 39-point, 70-31, lead with 13:58 left in the game. Syracuse continued its dominant offensive attack, extending the advantage to as many as 48, which is where the final tally of 105-57 remained.
Eastern returns to action Thursday, Dec. 22, when it squares off with Marygrove at the Convocation Center. Game time is slated for 2 p.m. Thursday afternoon.
(Courtesy of BSU Athletics)