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Syracuse has struggled across the board through head coach Adrian Autry’s second year. Poor defense and inconsistent shooting have plagued SU and led it to sit among the worst teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Still, rebounding has been a noticeable bright spot.

“If it’s anything that we’ve done pretty consistently this year, it’s rebounding the basketball,” Autry said on the ACC Coaches Call on Jan. 13.

Despite a recent three-game skid, the Orange rebounded, holding a 17-rebound advantage over Pitt despite a loss. Saturday in Berkeley, SU broke through its cold streak by using its advantage.

Led by a 24-13 first-half rebounding advantage, Syracuse (10-12, 4-7 ACC) took down Cal (11-11, 4-7 ACC) 75-66. The rebounding margin helped the Orange get out to a 40-23 lead at the break, one that was never relinquished, and clinch their second road win of the season.

Postgame, Autry again recognized the rebounding success through the season. But also, he saw the alteration that poured in more success through the first 20 minutes against the Golden Bears.

“Our frontcourt has rebounded all year,” Autry said. “Typically, we need to get our guards rebounding more. And I thought that was the difference in the first half.”

Entering the contest, Cal was the best offensive-rebounding team in the conference, tallying 13.3 per game. KenPom had it as the second-best offensive rebounding rate in the ACC at 35.9%.

SU’s numbers, however, were nearly as strong. It pulled in 37.6 rebounds per game and 27.0 defensive, ranking in the top five in the ACC. Eddie Lamkpin Jr.’s 23 rebounds a week ago against Pitt were impressive but still not enough. His prowess — and 10 total rebounds against Cal — along with Jyáre Davis’ play steadied the Orange.

Both Davis and guard Elijah Moore totaled two rebounds a piece across the first two minutes, eventually leading to driving layups by J.J. Starling. To open on a 9-0 run, Lampkin corralled a rebound on a long floater attempt from Jeremiah Wilkinson and pushed the pace upcourt, leading to a 3 by Moore.

Lampkin made his presence known, but Naheem McLeod provided an unexpected spark off the bench to give him a few breathers. McLeod totaled a season-high nine minutes and
substituted in with just over 12 minutes to play. He stayed in for four minutes, but they were extremely impactful. Just turning 25 years old on Jan. 31, McLeod’s role has deteriorated from a year ago when he averaged 3.9 points per game in 14.4 minutes.

Autry, however, said he’s seen McLeod work hard in practice the last two weeks and earn minutes. He grabbed a rebound after a short miss by Cal’s DeJuan Campbell. On the other end, he found a pass from Jaquan Carlos and floated it in for two.

A few minutes later, as the Orange built a 20-10 lead, a Syracuse defensive stop forced a poor shot by Cal’s Joshua Ola-Joseph and a defensive rebound from McLeod. Going back the other way, he received the ball in the low post and dished it out to Chris Bell for the triple to extend the lead to 13.

“(McLeod) gave us great minutes, and that’s hard to do and I give him a lot of credit,” Autry said.

Lamkpin entered back in with a little under eight minutes to play in the first half and totaled seven rebounds before halftime. His play, mixed with Davis’ five rebounds was impressive. But it’s the guard play on the glass that shifted momentum to spur multiple big Syracuse runs.

Using tip-outs from SU’s frontcourt, its backcourt of players like Starling, Lucas Taylor, Carlos and Moore secured the ball multiple times off of it. The four guards combined for seven rebounds in the first half and 17 overall. It’s not expected as part of their on-court responsibilities. There are many other ways they must impact the game. But the rebounding mark helped outduel its opponent’s strength coming in.

“When J.J. Starling gets five rebounds, Lucas Taylor gets seven, Elijah (Moore) gets two (Carlos) gets three. That’s the difference when our guards rebound,” Autry said.

Syracuse sprinted out to a lead and its rebounding totals through the poor shooting of the Golden Bears. Cal’s 4-of-23 shooting from the field allowed SU to work its way inside for 17 defensive rebounds. While entering with an ACC-leading mark, the Golden Bears had only four offensive rebounds. Mady Sissoko’s inside game was quickly stymied by Lamkpin Jr.’s physicality, and the rest followed for the Orange.

As Syracuse’s remaining games dwindle down, each one matters. Entering the night with multiple low-ranking ACC teams already winning, a loss to the Golden Bears would’ve been catastrophic for any hopes of securing a spot for now in the ACC Tournament.

SU’s second-half play wasn’t nearly as strong. Cal held a 24-18 rebounding advantage and tallied 13 offensive rebounds across the final 20 minutes. But Syracuse’s dominance across the opening 20 minutes was enough to push it in front by a wide margin, opening the gates for a lead that was too large to lose, even for a team struggling as much as the Orange.

Published on February 2, 2025 at 2:20 am

Contact Aiden at: amstepan@syr.edu | @AidenStepansky