Felisha Legette-Jack picked up her first win as the Syracuse University women’s basketball head coach in a season-opening victory against Stony Brook.
Right after the game finished, Legette-Jack grabbed a mic and spoke to SU fans as they were leaving the JMA Wireless Dome. She made it perfectly clear that whoever wants to come into the Dome and steal a win away from the Orange, they’d have to work hard to do it.
And that’s exactly what the Orange did.
Dyaisha Fair, Teisha Hyman, and Dariauna Lewis were the stars of the show, recording 18, 16, and 15 points, respectively. Lewis also recorded four blocks, the most among all players in the game.
Coach Legette-Jack was not shy about turning to her bench either. Her best bench player was Georgia Woolley, the sophomore guard who followed her from Buffalo to Syracuse. Woolley recorded just eight points, but was a spark to the offense whenever she was on the floor.
The Orange out-rebounded the Seawolves, especially on the offensive end. Despite winning the offensive rebound battle 25-13, the Orange record just three more second-chance points than the Seawolves.
This game was played almost entirely in the paint. Both teams came out ready to defend the basket and did so aggressively. Despite the physicality of play under the hoop, neither team was able to find much success offensively.
Shooting was a struggle for both teams. Syracuse shot just 39% from the field, and Stony Brook only made 31% of its shots. On Syracuse’s side, the poor shooting performance can largely be attributed to an overreliance on the layup. With how aggressively the Seawolves were defending the rim, the Orange needed to move their shots away from the basket.
Syracuse was clearly the better defensive team, tallying 13 steals to Stony Brook’s three. Six of those steals can be attributed to Teisha Hyman alone. Her athleticism on the defensive end gave the Orange the spark they needed to overcome the Seawolves’ offensive attack.
In her post-game press conference, Coach Legette-Jack expressed her gratitude to the fans who showed up today and vowed to make them proud to be an Orange fan.
“I want their pride to be earned by us, and I want them to understand that it’s not for granted,” said Legette-Jack. “I just really know in my heart that we’re going to grow this to five to ten thousand people.”
Teisha Hyman, one of the few players to return to the Syracuse program this year, spoke about the difference having Legette-Jack as a coach has made to the team.
“Playing under Coach Jack is different from many coaches,” said Hyman. “She just brings a different type of energy and culture. It’s just like a fresh start.”
The Orange are back in action at Colgate this Thursday at 7:00 P.M.