After defeating No. 14 North Carolina on Thursday, Syracuse women's basketball has a chance to turn some heads on Sunday afternoon. The Orange take a trip to Purcell Pavilion—a place they have won zero games in 18 tries—where they take on #10 Notre Dame for the away half of the season series.
The last time the two met, Syracuse played three good quarters against the Fighting Irish until Olivia Miles and company ran the Orange out of the building. Notre Dame was up by five going into the final frame, then outscored Syracuse 22-11 in the fourth to secure the road victory.
Miles scored 23 of the Irish’s 72 points, picking up seven rebounds and seven assists. As good as Notre Dame is, it really would not operate without Miles on top of her game. The Phillipsburg, New Jersey product is shooting a hair under 50% from the field, garnering team highs in both rebounds (7.1) and assists (7.2). The WNBA prospect will have to do some of the same without guard Dana Mabrey, who suffered an ACL injury against Virginia and is out for the season.
The Orange do have a prolific scorer of their own, with Dyaisha Fair averaging just over 20 points per game and continuing to be a top guard in the ACC. In her last two games, she has scored 24 against Boston College and 23 against North Carolina. If you add her 20-point road performance against Virginia Tech at Cassel Colosseum, the Rochester native has scored 20 or more points in each of her last three games. But with the size in South Bend, how can she make an impact against Notre Dame?
What Fair has done this season is nothing short of star worthy. Creating her own space, shooting off the dribble, finishing in traffic and knocking down the long ball, shooting 36% from beyond the arc. Being so the ACC is a much stronger conference than the MAC, many thought it would take an entire season for her to get comfortable in Orange. Instead, the former Buffalo standout has dominated the conference, not just in scoring but her ability to pass.
The key for Fair is to share the ball against the Fighting Irish. The senior has back-to-back performances with seven assists and four such games this season. In all four of those games, Syracuse earned wins, and Fair was still able to score 19 or more points.
Both teams shoot free throws at an average clip. The Orange, seventh in the ACC at 72.3%, and Fighting Irish directly behind them at 71.5%. But where Syracuse has the advantage is their free throw percentage in the last two games. The Orange are 30-34 in the last 80 minutes, good for 88%. If they can get to the line more than Notre Dame, that could keep them close and within striking distance in the fourth quarter—a quarter they have struggled in until Thursday’s victory.
The lights will shine bright in Purcell Pavilion at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday as Syracuse looks for head coach Felisha Legette-Jack’s first top-10 victory against Notre Dame.