Five Takeaways: Syracuse 77 NC State 65

Syracuse basketball picked up a big win Saturday against NC State. Here are five takeaways from the victory. 

1. JJ Starling

After a poor shooting game against Florida State, Starling came out hot against NC State. He scored Syracuse's first 10 points on his way to a career high 26 points. Starling scored at all three levels including four three pointers and played strong defense for most of the game. It was a nice bounce back for Starling, who had been shooting well lately outside of the loss to the Seminoles. 

2. Benny Williams

Benny Williams had one of his better games of the season with 11 points, five rebounds and two blocks in 26 minutes. He was physical inside, played good help defense and attacked the boards. If he can play like that more consistently, it makes a huge difference for this team. He did miss one or two 

3. Defense

The defense was stellar in the first half was outstanding. Syracuse held NC State to 22 points on 21% shooting while forcing eight turnovers. For the first eight minutes or so of the second half it was good as well, as NC State scored just 12 points. Over the last nine minutes, however, the Wolfpack scored 25 points. During that stretch, NC State got a lot of good looks from the outside and at the rim. Overall, though, Syracuse was good defensively. NC State shot just 36% and turned it over 14 times. The Orange was aggressive, active and contested. They held NC State's best players, DJ Burns and DJ Horne, to just 10-28 shooting. They are getting closer to putting a full 40 minutes of defense together, but are not there quite yet. 

4. Peter Carey

It may have only been 11 minutes, but Peter Carey showed he can give Syracuse something as a reserve big. With Maliq Brown in foul trouble, he was forced into action. With DJ Burns on the floor, Carey drew the assignment of defending the 6-9, 275 pounder. Despite the weight discrepancy, Carey held his own. He was physical with Burns and made him take tough shots. It was an impressive 11 minutes where he grabbed four rebounds as well. Now he does need to be able to finish as he missed an open layup on a good cut to the basket, but he showed promise on the boards and defensively. 

5. Bounce Back