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After snapping its six-game losing streak against Pittsburgh, Syracuse went on the road to face a struggling Miami side. SU got the game within a point in the final quarter, but the Hurricanes went on a 9-0 run to prevent the Orange from securing their first road win of the season.

Syracuse is back in the Carrier Dome to face its ninth ranked opponent of the season in Louisville. The Cardinals beat the Orange 84-71 less than a month ago in the midst of SU’s losing streak, and since then, Syracuse has won just one game while Louisville has continued to dominate opponents.

Here is everything you need to know before Syracuse (9-11, 2-8 ACC) hosts No. 4 Louisville (20-2, 10-1 ACC) on Sunday afternoon:

All-time series

Louisville leads, 16-7.

Last time they played

The two sides last faced in mid-January at the KFC Yum! Center, with then-No. 3 Louisville beating Syracuse by 13. The Orange, fueled by a 48.1% shooting rate, kept the game close through the first three quarters, even taking the lead with under two minutes to go in the third. But Syracuse’s routine fourth-quarter fatigue settled in, and Louisville went on a 19-7 run to close out the game, preventing SU from securing the upset victory.

Four Syracuse players recorded double figures, but the Cardinals’ Hailey Van Lith and Kianna Smith both recorded 20 points and shot over 50% from the field to solidify the home win.

The Cardinals report

When the two sides last played each other less than a month ago, Louisville was on a 13-game win streak that began after the season opener, which it lost in overtime. Since then, the Cardinals have won six of their last seven, only falling to then-No. 4 NC State in a nine-point loss. Other than that, Louisville has dominated its Atlantic Coast Conference competition and is coming off a 22-point win over Clemson.

Sophomore forward Olivia Cochran leads all starters in field goal percentage, while Emily Engstler — a senior and former Syracuse forward — leads the Cardinals in 3-point percentage.

Engstler also leads Louisville in rebounds with 186 (46th nationally) and averages 8.5 boards per game. At 6-foot-1, Engstler is one of eight Louisville players over 6-feet tall, compared to Syracuse’s three (among active players). Louisville should outshoot and outrebound Syracuse, but its depth should be the difference maker to secure the season sweep over the Orange.

How Syracuse beats Louisville

Syracuse took its only lead over Louisville at the end of the third quarter in January because it excelled at what it does best: hitting 3s. The Orange made three consecutive 3s amid a back-and-forth 14-10 run that saw them take their only lead of the game, which was just a point.

Louisville’s 3-point shooting ranks seventh nationally, its 2-point field goal percentage is just over 45%, and its rebounding is ranked in the top 60 nationally, compared to Syracuse’s, which ranks 160th. If the Orange can once again win the 3-point contest — which they did last time against the Cardinals — they should be in for another close battle with a ranked ACC opponent.

Player to watch: Hailey Van Lith, guard, No. 10

Since Van Lith recorded a then-season-high 20 points against Syracuse, her play hasn’t slowed at all. She’s recorded double figures in all but two games since, including a 34-point onslaught against Clemson, where she went a perfect 6-for-6 from deep, missing just three of her 16 field goal attempts.

The sophomore guard missed less than a third of her 3-point attempts since she last faced the Orange, being Louisville’s go-to kick out option on the wings. Van Lith ranks 10th in the ACC with a 42.8% field-goal percentage and provides just as much of a threat outside the paint as the rest of the Cardinals do inside.

Stat to know: 53.8 opponent points per game

Louisville has allowed the 11th-fewest points per game in the country, per Her Hoop Stats. It beats teams by an average of 17.8 points per game and averages over 70 on its own. The Cardinals have only allowed over 60 points just nine times this season — five times in their last six games — holding ranked sides like Georgia Tech and Michigan below that scoring mark. Teams have only averaged a 36.5% success rate from the field against the Cardinals, who possess the second-best scoring defense in the ACC.

Syracuse managed to score 71 points against Louisville and has made over 30% of its shots from the field in five of its last six games, including a near 50% shooting rate in its first meeting against Louisville. SU averages two more points per game than the Cardinals do (73.7) and still shoots above 40%, but it hasn’t faced a top 30 scoring defense since Georgia Tech, which has the best defense in the country.

Published on February 5, 2022 at 7:50 pm

Contact Alex: ahcirino@syr.edu