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Syracuse enters Saturday morning’s game against University of Maryland, Baltimore County, on a five-game winning streak following a 40-point blowout of Clemson. The Orange overcame a difficult shooting performance in the first quarter, ending the win with their fourth straight game shooting over 50% from the field.

Alaysia Styles recorded her first double-double with Syracuse against the Tigers, and Najé Murray led scorers with 21 points, going 4-for-8 from 3-point range.

Now, SU faces its first of two nonconference opponents before going into Atlantic Coast Conference play, starting with the UMBC. The Retrievers haven’t won a game since their opening matchup against Gettysburg, and their seven-game losing streak also includes a 46-point loss to Wake Forest on Nov. 27.

Before the Orange (7-4, 1-1 ACC) square off against UMBC (1-8), here’s everything to know about the Retrievers:

All-time series

Syracuse leads 1-0.

Last time they played

Syracuse’s only other game against UMBC was two years ago in an 82-48 win for the Orange. SU overcame a 22.9% shooting performance from 3-point range by finding the majority of its points in the paint. Four of the five Syracuse starters finished with double-digit points, and Emily Engstler — the fifth starter — grabbed six rebounds and dished out five assists. Teisha Hyman scored 16 points off the bench.

The win snapped SU’s three-game losing streak, one that included games against then-No. 3 Stanford and then-No. 24 Michigan. UMBC briefly held a 6-5 lead three minutes into the game, but a layup from Amaya Finklea-Guity gave Syracuse a lead it didn’t relinquish.

The UMBC report

After a dominant win against Gettysburg where UMBC held the Bullets to just 33 points, the Retrievers slipped further and further into a difficult slide. Offensively, they’re below average from the field and rank 93rd in the country in 3-point shooting, according to Her Hoop Stats. But statistically, UMBC has one of the worst defenses in the country — opponents are shooting 44.6% against the Retrievers.

The Retrievers have been outscored by 14.1 points across their first nine games and have lost four of their eight games by double-digits. Graduate student Janee’a Summers leads UMBC with 14.3 points per game, but no one else on the team is averaging more than 9.3 points on a team that ranks 313th in the country in points per game. UMBC hasn’t had horrific shooting performances from the field like the Orange periodically have, but did shoot just 2-for-15 from deep in its loss against Wake Forest.

How Syracuse beats UMBC

Murray said after SU’s win over Clemson that if SU keeps taking shots, the shots will eventually fall. The Orange are finally playing a successful style of basketball that demonstrates they don’t need a big man inside the paint to center their offense. Acting head coach Vonn Read’s switch to the five-out scheme has proved to be a successful adjustment to personnel and has allowed the offense to hum across its last five wins.

UMBC ranks 332nd in the country in total rebounds per game and 310th in defensive boards, according to Her Hoop Stats. There’s little threat that the Retrievers might put together a quick run or keep the game close if Syracuse doesn’t have initial shooting success. That allows the Orange — and its potent trio of guards — to confidently shoot from deep, dump the ball down to Styles in the post and find success from mid-range again.

Player to watch: Danae Marquez, guard, No. 22

Marquez has made an instant impact for the Retrievers since transferring after four years at San Jose State. Despite averaging just 6.3 points per game, she leads the team in three-point shooting (43.8%) and is the main option for UMBC from beyond the arc. She also averages just under four rebounds per game, showing she can be somewhat of a presence down low, especially against smaller teams like SU.

The guard has been streaky in the early stages of the season, however, and she has gone scoreless in two games despite playing at least 30 minutes in each. But against Lafayette, she scored 18 points, returning to double-digit production for the first time since her first game with UMBC.

Stat to know: 99 total assists

A lack of scoring naturally means a lack of assists, and SU’s offensive scheme lends itself to its 191 assists. But UMBC, ranking near the bottom of the country in total assists (99), shows it won’t be able to generate that extra pass that might put Syracuse’s 2-3 zone on its heels. The Orange have been bitten by assists into the paint or a dish outside for a wide-open 3 in games where they’ve let opponents hang around. Allowing a team that doesn’t shoot that well from deep to attempt to shoot out of the zone, without the threat of passing inside, might allow SU to quickly shut down UMBC’s offense.

If the Orange can limit the amount of extra passes and assists against the Retrievers, especially those that could slice up their zone, they will easily cruise to their sixth straight win.

Published on December 17, 2021 at 3:43 pm

Contact Anthony: aalandt@syr.edu | @anthonyalandt