Physicality will be the name of the game when unbeaten Syracuse takes on visiting Monmouth on Tuesday.
The Orange (3-0) drubbed Binghamton, Delaware State and Drexel to open the season, including 40- and 30-point wins the past two weekends. They rank eighth nationally with a plus-36.0 scoring margin, but are likely to see a step up in competition when they face Monmouth (1-2) of the Coastal Athletic Association.
Syracuse traveled to Philadelphia on Saturday to face Drexel in what was technically a neutral-court game at the 76ers’ home arena. The Orange led only 37-32 at halftime, partially because Drexel outrebounded Syracuse by a whopping 19-8 in the first half (and 39-36 by day’s end).
Orange head coach Adrian Autry wants his team to play fast, but not forget to hold down the fort at the other end.
“The best teams in the country are all good defensive teams,” Autry said. “That’s what we want to hang our hat on. Getting back to our energy – be aggressive, hunting, I think we did that in the second half.”
Kiyan Anthony led Syracuse with 18 points against Drexel, while the Orange leaned on William Kyle III (10 rebounds) and Nate Kingz (nine) on the boards. Donnie Freeman paces Syracuse at 17.7 points per game and Anthony averages 17.3 per game, while Kyle averages a near double-double (10.7 ppg, 9.3 rpg).
Monmouth plays its second straight game against a power-conference team as it fared well in a 70-58 loss Thursday at Seton Hall.
The Hawks led Seton Hall by as many as nine points in the first half and seven at halftime before the Pirates clamped down on defense.
“I knew what was going to happen,” Monmouth coach King Rice said. “They were going to come after us, and the physicality messed us up.”
Greek freshman Stefanos Spartalis paced Monmouth with 16 points and Jack Collins scored 13. Jason Rivera-Torres, who finished that game with 10 points, eight rebounds and five assists, is the Hawks’ early leader in scoring (14.3), rebounding (7.7) and steals (2.3).
