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SOUTH BEND, Ind. — After 15 straight missed shots and 83 minutes and 34 seconds of game time, Joe Girard III finally found his rhythm. Girard received a pass on the right wing, took one dribble with his left hand and flicked his right wrist.
It was a perfect swish, his first made field goal since 16:41 left in the first half against Bryant on Nov. 26. There were no sighs of relief after this 3. No smile, no fist bump, no three fingers in the air. Just a jog back to the top of the 2-3 zone, and a few high fives. To the naked eye, Girard’s 3 was not major. Syracuse trailed Notre Dame 15-13 just seven minutes into the game. But for a guy who totaled only nine points in his last three games (all losses), this make was crucial.
Girard made eight more shots, finishing the game with 20 points (and the Orange needed every one of them in a 62-61 road win over Notre Dame). Jesse Edwards, who recorded 16+ rebounds for the third-straight game as well as a season-high 22 points — finally had the complementary piece Syracuse missed since its win over Richmond. Judah Mintz made two big shots late and Jim Boeheim’s defensive adjustments led to a bevy of missed ND second-half 3’s and an end to SU’s three-game losing streak.
The win displayed what Syracuse is capable of. Yes, we’ve seen the weaknesses — evident against Illinois and Colgate — but this team has plenty of strengths, and can compete in the Atlantic Coast Conference if it plays like it did Saturday. Everything, though, is dependent on Girard and Edwards. If those two play well, the Orange can beat good teams. If they don’t, they’ll lose to bad ones. If the first eight games are any indication, Girard and Edwards’ success will, like it or not, correlate with SU’s this season.
“They have to be the two guys we depend on,” Boeheim said of Girard and Edwards after the season-opening win over Lehigh.
The fact that Girard’s return to the statsheet Saturday coincided with a Syracuse win isn’t surprising. In SU’s four wins, Girard averaged 22.8 points, notching at least 19 in each. In losses, he’s averaging 5.8, only reaching double-digits against Colgate. You can look deeper into the stats — Girard shoots just 15% in losses, 48.5% in wins — but the simple truth is the Orange need their backcourt leader to do his part. Consistently.
Girard hasn’t been reliable so far this year. But after a strong game at ND, Girard has seven winnable games in front of him before the heat of ACC play.
“We needed Joe to bounce back,” Boeheim said postgame Saturday. “That was the difference in the game.”
Boeheim said Syracuse ran some plays for Girard against Notre Dame, with Edwards setting screens to create openings, but Girard was also very aggressive. On one play in the second half, Edwards tried to get position before setting a screen on Trey Wertz. Girard ran toward the corner, and Justin Taylor dished the ball to him, his shot softly falling through the net for a 50-48 SU lead.
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Getting reliable scoring from Girard will take some pressure off Edwards, who has proven to be Syracuse’s best player this year. He leads the ACC in rebounds (11.6) and blocks (2.4) per game, in addition to registering nearly 15 points per game. Against Notre Dame, Edwards recorded his third double-double and played the full 40 minutes for the first time in his career. And Boeheim said Edwards should get the ball even more.
“I’m confident in myself and my team is confident in me to finish when I get inside,” Edwards said.
Saturday was the first time Edwards and Girard had both played well since SU’s Nov. 21 win over Richmond when Girard had a career-high 31 points and Edwards posted 10 points, eight rebounds and tied a career-high six blocks. Syracuse won that game in overtime, but lost the next night against St. John’s, which outscored it 11-4 in overtime. Edwards finished with 18 points and eight rebounds while Girard went a dismal 1-for-10.
Mintz is a talented player who can do things few recent Syracuse point guards could. He’s also shown at times why he’s just a freshman, fading late in that St. John’s game by turning the ball over six times (five coming after halftime) and going 3-for-16 against Illinois.
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The Orange turned to Mintz for two late buckets against ND, including the game-winner, but that doesn’t have to be the case. The offense should run through Girard and Edwards.
When Girard and Edwards perform well — the guard hunting his shots, knocking down 3s and mid-range jumpers, the big man getting inside position and dominating the glass — and Mintz makes a few big plays, Syracuse is entirely capable of beating quality ACC teams. And we all know how important quality wins are, especially road ones like Saturday’s, come March.
For now, though, the Orange have a seven-game stretch that should, according to KenPom, result in seven straight wins. The next big test is at No. 3 Virginia on January 7. By then, Syracuse will need Edwards to play to the level he has been at so far, Mintz to be the spark plug and the defense to have an identity.
But more than anything else, Syracuse needs consistent scoring from Girard. His bounce-back performance helped SU get a much-needed win. Whether he can play like that the rest of the season will determine where this year goes.
Connor Smith is a senior staff writer at The Daily Orange, where his column appears occasionally. He can be reached at csmith49@syr.edu or on Twitter @csmith17_.
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