Most of Syracuse's 84-79 loss to Drexel on Tuesday night wasn't much different than any of the other recent SU games.
The slow start-after its lead in the first minutes of the game the Orange played from behind until just over three minutes remained in the half, a habit that has become commonplace in the team's non-conference play.
The Demetris Nichols scoring binge-a new career high of 31 points accompanied his past three scoring outputs of 26, 28 and 28.
The Darryl Watkins presence on the boards-his season average was 5.3 rebounds per game, but Saturday against Baylor he accumulated eight rebounds, and Tuesday against Drexel he snatched 13.
But, unlike in its last two victories, there was no fairy tale ending for the Orange.
The Dragons (7-2) sent No. 23 Syracuse to the locker room with its third loss of the season in the Orange's second to last game before the Big East schedule begins. Drexel overcame a 10-point deficit early in the second half to beat Syracuse, 84-79, at the Carrier Dome in front of 16,328 on Tuesday night.
This marks the earliest in a season SU (9-3) has suffered three losses since 1998-99 (Dec. 12, 1998) and the first time the Orange will enter the Big East with at least three losses since the 1981-82 season. The Dragons season kicked off on a different note; they've now defeated Syracuse, Villanova and St. Joseph's, all on the road. Drexel's win over Villanova was its first in school's history; its victory over SU served as its first win over a ranked opponent since the NCAA tournament in 1996. The Orange led 46-36 two minutes into the second half, but suffered a crisis in the half's middle minutes, scoring only six points in over seven minutes. Nichols, who scored 15 of the team's first 23 points, came up dry for a 13-minute span.
But the difference was in the defense.
Senior forward Terrence Roberts suffered a left knee sprain with less than a minute remaining in the first half and never returned. His numbers in the first half-five points and six rebounds-seem unimpressive. But his coaches and teammates had the scoreboard to remind them of his defensive presence.
"We're fragile right now," head coach Jim Boeheim said. "We can't afford to play without Terrence. We had no answer defensively without him."
Nichols said Drexel continued getting the ball in the high post and kicking it back out, which led to the Dragons going 4-for-9 from 3-point land in the second half. Center Frank Elegar, who Roberts helped guard in the game's first half, accomplished a new career high with 27 points.
"We just needed another big man in there," Watkins said.
However, if Watkins hadn't accomplished the standout game he did, the gap in the score would have been much wider. Alongside his 13 rebounds, Watkins posted 14 points and five blocks before fouling out with a minute and a half to go.
On both ends, Watkins' contributions to the Demetris Nichols spectacle just didn't suffice. Watkins said he wants to be a member of Nichols' supporting cast, but thus far, the show's been from the two of them.
"We're relying so much on Demetris right now, and it's just not going to work," Boeheim said. "We need to find another option."
Who that option is remains to be unseen.
SU appeared on a rampage to come back with a pair of Nichols jumpers with just more than two minutes to go in the game. But as the Orange experienced in its two other losses this season, it was too little, too late. A pair of free throws by freshman Paul Harris cut the lead to three with 36 seconds to play, but the Dragons converted 3-of-4 free throws in the game's waning minutes.
In the last minute alone, Nichols, Harris and sophomore guard Andy Rautins all missed shots, and junior guard Josh Wright one of two free throws.
While the shots didn't fall, the intensity peaked. But that, Harris said, is just another part of the problem.
"If we could play as hard as we do when we're down when we're up, we'd win every game," Harris said. "We need to keep doing what got us the lead. We need to learn how to close games out."
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