Geno Thorpe was trying to will Syracuse into the lead.

With Tyus Battle, the team’s best player, on the bench with two fouls, Thorpe played shooting guard and fulfilled the job description. He hit a 3-pointer on a pass from Marek Dolezaj to put Syracuse up by one. Two minutes later, he cashed in a Paschal Chukwu steal with a jumper to put the Orange up by one again. Two minutes after that, he hit another 3 on a pass from Dolezaj to give Syracuse back a lead it never relinquished. On the sideline, Syracuse’s usually reserved head coach Jim Boeheim gave half a fist-pump.

For good measure the grad transfer from South Florida, who missed about a month of practice this fall due to a lingering ankle injury, nailed another 3 on the next possession in Syracuse’s (3-0) eventual 80-67 victory over Texas Southern (0-4) on Saturday night in the Carrier Dome.

“I’m still working my way back,” Thorpe said after the game. “(Tonight), I feel more comfortable than usual. … I just wanted to come in and do my role. Just making plays and coming in bringing energy and knocking down open 3s.”

In all, Thorpe hit 5-of-6 shots in the first half, including 3-of-4 beyond on the arc, for 13 points in 14 minutes.

It was the exact half the Orange’s offense needed because it allowed another potential primary scoring option to get reps. It plugged Syracuse’s hole without Battle and ensured the Orange still entered halftime steadily in control. SU could’ve gone back to Battle if it needed to, Boeheim said, but “Geno got going.”

“It hurt him to miss all that time,” Boeheim said. “He still doesn’t have the push that he had early in the year off his foot. But … I thought (Thorpe’s first-half play) was a good thing. I thought Frank (Howard) and Geno played well together during that stretch. It was good for them to get some time together.”

Todd Michalek | Staff Photographer

When Thorpe entered, it enacted the plan the Syracuse coaching staff foresaw when assistant Allen Griffin called Thorpe over the summer. The Orange had two known commodities at guard in Battle and Howard, as well as an unknown in freshman Howard Washington. Adding a fourth guard provided some insurance and protected SU from stretching itself thin if one of the guards got hurt or if one found himself in foul trouble.

Finding a combo guard of Thorpe’s skillset — he played some point guard at his two previous stops, South Florida and Penn State — eased the ball-handling burden on Howard when he entered. Howard said he felt like he could be more selective in shooting and move off the ball a little bit. It also gave him another scorer to pass to. Late in the half, from the top of the key, Howard found Thorpe cutting to the hoop, who finished as he was fouled for an and-1.

“Overall,” Howard said, “(our offense) got a little stagnant and he showed what he can do individually. … We can just be a two-headed point guard out there.”

For his offensive successes, Thorpe several times throughout the night drew the ire of the coaches from his perch at the top of the zone. Thorpe, at 6-foot-3, is the smallest of Syracuse’s regular guard rotation of Battle, Howard and himself. Late in the first half, after an entry pass into the high post led to an easy Texas Southern score, Syracuse assistant coach Gerry McNamara leapt off the bench and pointed at Thorpe: “Play big! Get long! Pick that off!”

Late in the second half, Derrick Bruce of the Tigers shot a 3-pointer over Thorpe, who didn’t have his hand up to contest, and Boeheim looked at Thorpe and put his hand out.

When asked what role the young players had in some defensive lapses, Boeheim said, “They have to understand. Geno’s not young. You can’t do that, doesn’t matter really who’s in the game. You’ve got to play, you can’t lose your focus on defense.”

After his breakout first half on the offense, Thorpe quieted for the second. He played only seven minutes, missing all three shots, dishing out one assist and turning the ball over once. Battle erupted for 16 points and a thunderous dunk. But Thorpe had done everything he needed to do in bridging that gap. He had eased into what the Orange hopes will be his role all season.

When asked about when he expects to be back to full health, Thorpe said, “I can’t put a timetable on that, I’m not sure. Tomorrow, I hope.”

Published on November 18, 2017 at 11:02 pm

Contact Sam: sjfortie@syr.edu | @Sam4TR