Elashier Hall looked up and quietly repeated the question to herself, searching for an answer. But after a second of thought, Hall said she still didn’t have a grasp on her recent offensive slump.

By the end of her explanation, though, the Syracuse guard decided her struggles didn’t matter in the big picture for the Orange.

‘In practice, I’m just getting up a lot of shots, working hard and not making it about myself because obviously it’s a team effort,’ Hall said last Friday. ‘I feel like if Iasia (Hemingway) and Kayla (Alexander) are getting it done then get the ball to them, it’s really not on me.’

Though Hall downplayed her importance to Syracuse’s (13-7, 2-4 Big East) success as a team, her play is crucial to the Orange’s chances to win games night in and night out. That much was clear after Hall scored 14 points and keyed a furious comeback victory over Seton Hall on Sunday. While Alexander and Hemingway led the way with 23 and 18 points, respectively, the Orange may have been destined for another Big East loss if Hall hadn’t stepped up to support them on the perimeter.

Syracuse’s high-low game can be dominant at times, but for much of the season, it has also become the team’s only offensive option. The backcourt has failed to provide a desperately needed scoring punch, especially with Hall — the Orange’s most experienced guard — losing her scoring touch for long stretches throughout the season.

Her latest cold streak saw her score just four points combined in Syracuse’s previous four conference games leading up to its matchup with Seton Hall on Sunday. The worst came against Georgetown on Jan. 15 when Hall went 0-of-13 from the field and failed to score.

SU guard Carmen Tyson-Thomas said the entire backcourt has to step up, not just Hall.

‘It’s not just one player that’s struggling,’ Tyson-Thomas said. ‘All of us as guards are having trouble getting the ball in the basket right now.’

Still, Hall was expected to be the leader and go-to scoring option on the perimeter following Erica Morrow’s graduation.

And she appeared ready for the responsibility in Syracuse’s season opener against Long Beach State. Hall led the team with 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in an aggressive performance that earned her the praise of head coach Quentin Hillsman and Tyson-Thomas after the game.

At times, Hall was the Orange’s only confident scoring threat as it worked through some rust that comes with the first game. On one play, she missed a 3-pointer from the top of the key, but followed her own shot to get the rebound. She then used a jump stop to create space against a defender and banked in a short jumper.

But that confidence disappeared during the team’s first four games to reopen Big East play in January. Like Hall, Hillsman didn’t have an answer for her tough times.

‘I don’t know. It’s tough to say,’ Hillsman said. ‘You look at the shots she’s getting, she’s getting very good shots, and we need Lacie to continue to take those shots. If I could fix it, it would have been fixed.’

Hall fixed that against the Pirates on Sunday.

Alexander and Hemingway set the tone in the paint in the first half, with the SU center scoring 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting and the forward adding nine. And Hall gave the Orange a rare option on the outside, registering seven points.

Hillsman said after the game that the inside play helped Syracuse build a 55-45 lead in the second half. The head coach said his team finally got back to pounding the ball inside and rebounding, leading to the win.

Tyson-Thomas said SU knows it’s a high-low team, and that’s not going to change this season. The Orange is willing to put its fate in the hands of Alexander and Hemingway every night.

But it was Hall who came through to lead the Orange to the comeback victory in the final minutes. She hit a big 3-pointer and added a free throw to tie the game and set the stage for the Orange to finish the comeback.

It may start with the post game, but Hall’s scoring ability adds another dimension to the offense.

‘Just working hard. Getting up more shots in practice and converting them during the games,’ Hall said. ‘I mean Kayla and Iasia do an excellent job with their high-low games, so we try to focus on that a lot because that’s what’s helping us this year and years previous.’

rjgery@syr.edu

Published on January 23, 2012 at 12:00 pm

Contact Ryne: rjgery@syr.edu