Syracuse men’s basketball: what to watch vs Mercyhurst

The Syracuse Orange (6-4) look to bounce back from their disappointing loss to Hofstra when they host the Mercyhurst Lakers (4-7) tonight in the JMA Dome. The game tips at 7:00 and will be streaming on ACCNX. Here’s what we’re watching for tonight:

Kevin: A sense of urgency

In the three Q1 games I saw (missed Iowa State), I felt that the Orange played with a lot of energy and intensity. That’s been lacking the last two games and while I get that playing at the end of the semester and through illness against “smaller” schools isn’t the same, they have to get back to Level 5. It’s on the players and coaches. If the team comes out sluggish, then Autry needs to call on the press, or get someone in the game who wants to instill some enthusiasm. Syracuse needs a couple of big blowouts this week and I want to see them play with some desperation.

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Dom: A bounce back from George

His performance against Hofstra wasn’t his finest. While Naithan George did have six assists, he didn’t score a single point and missed all four of the shots he took, three of which came from three. Syracuse’s offense has flatlined at times this year and George has to be more aggressive finding his shot. In turn, that will open up his playmaking abilities. The Orange have other avenues to improve (like intensity, execution on defense and free throw shooting), but I want to see him be more aggressive offensively.

Max: Anything but free(throws)
We all know of Syracuse’s free-throw struggles (56.8%, the worst rate in the country), but it won’t be a significant disadvantage against a Mercyhurst team that shoots nearly as badly (61.8%, 355th per KenPom). Look for the Orange to get out quickly in transition to speed up a slow-paced Lakers team, and more importantly, avoid the foul line. Even so, both teams might combine for enough bricks at the charity stripe to build a third dorm on The Mount.

Szuba: Rees and threes

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Mercyhurst goes small across the roster so I look for…

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Publish date : 2025-12-17 17:00:00

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