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Mouthwatering anticipation surrounded freshman Elijah Moore’s arrival at Syracuse. Moore already had a devout social media following, a deadly 3-point shot and a distinct celebration. His stock looked bound to keep growing at SU.

However, to start the season, Moore’s long-range arrows have frequently missed the bullseye. Through six games, the Bronx native went 2-for-10 (20%) from beyond the arc. Moore’s career-high was eight points versus Colgate and Texas Tech and his season-high minutes was 20 against Colgate.

Wednesday, Syracuse (4-2, 0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) was languishing offensively, shooting 3-for-17 and down 16-6 to Cornell (4-3, 0-0 Ivy League) with nine minutes to go in the first half. That’s when Autry turned to Moore off the bench and he answered the call. The freshman scored a career-high 19 points on 5-for-7 3-point shooting while also grabbing seven rebounds in 23 minutes, as SU defeated Cornell 82-72.

“We were not shooting the ball well, (Moore) came in, and he hit five 3s. That was big,” Syracuse head coach Adrian Autry said postgame.

Autry praised Moore’s breakout scoring performance but also noted the continued improvement on defense, something that didn’t show up on the boxscore. Moore mentioned his focus on positioning while on defense and understanding where to be depending on the situation.

“The biggest improvement he’s made is on the defensive end, and he’s earned some minutes because of that, not solely because he can make a shot,” Autry said. “He’s getting better day-by-day, week-by-week, and he’s really making a concentrated effort.”

Moore’s day began with an assist to J.J. Starling as he swung a pass to Starling in the left corner. The guard drove down the baseline and finished at the cup.

With under nine minutes to play in the first half, Petar Majstorovic received a pass inside, but his layup was off. Majstorovic grabbed his own miss, feeding a running Eddie Lampkin Jr., but he couldn’t get his shot to drop either.

Again, Majstorovic snatched the rebound and kicked it out to Starling. Starling dished it to Moore on the right corner, and the freshman canned SU’s first 3-pointer of the game to trim its deficit to 17-11.

“If Elijah gets an open 3, he takes it,” Autry said.

Moore got to his spot on the right wing again with under six minutes remaining in the first half. Starling found the freshman, but once Moore received the pass, he froze. Cornell’s Jacob Beccles stood in front of Moore, guarding him closely. But that didn’t deter Moore from making another triple.

With SU on a 13-0 run, Moore hesitated on shooting another 3, instead assisting a Lucas Taylor floater that made the score 26-20. Moore navigated around a Jyáre Davis screen to swish a pull-up mid-range jumper to regain Syracuse’s six-point lead with 1:42 to go in the first half.

Moore spearheaded a 7-0 SU run in the final minute of the first half, giving the Orange an 11-point halftime cushion. He drilled a corner 3. Then he grabbed a defensive rebound and handled the ball for SU. After giving up the ball on the possession, he got it back in the corner to attempt another 3, but it didn’t fall. Moore grabbed the rebound and sank a fadeaway as time expired.

“His ability to shoot the ball, him and Chris (Bell), that’s a big plus for us, especially when we have Eddie, Jyáre, all those guys on the floor, we need spacing,” Autry said.

Moore didn’t return to the court until seven minutes into the second half and soon picked up where he left off. SU had fallen into an offensive rut, making one of its last seven shots, and the Big Red had cut the Orange’s lead to two points. Moore found his spot in the left corner and uncorked a 3, and the shot was pure.

“I see them pushing, and I just wanted to run the floor, and make sure that (Starling) had support if he needed it. I called his name, he hit me, I knocked it down and it felt amazing,” Moore said

After the make, Moore raised his left elbow to the ebullient JMA Wireless Dome crowd, performing his trademark celebration where he flaunts his bullseye tattoo — a sign of his 3-point shooting prowess.

Moore had one last long-range splash in store, and it was dagger into the heart of the Big Red. With Syracuse’s lead tightened to four points, Nazir Williams drove inside and looked to have an easy layup. But Taylor denied the effort with a high-flying block.

Moore picked up the loose ball, drove down the court and found a spot on the left wing. He squared himself to the hoop and nailed the triple to give SU a seven-point advantage with 1:38 to go.

The Bronx native wasn’t the only freshman who had a career night Wednesday. Donnie Freeman also notched a season-best 23 points and 12 rebounds. Majstorovic also played a season-high 18 minutes. Moore and Freeman combined for 42 points while the rest of SU managed 40.

“Coming in, (Freeman) did a good job attacking the basket, getting down low, and I did a good job spreading the floor, getting to my spots and hitting shots,” Moore said.

Autry lauded the youngsters’ showing. He said they were an example for the rest of Syracuse. He noted their performances warranted more minutes. The head coach mentioned playing freshmen can lead to ups and downs. Though the freshman — headlined by Moore and Freeman — gave Syracuse the boost when it needed it most to overcome the Big Red.

“We just brought a lot of energy,” Moore said. “I guess being younger guys, having a lot to prove, we came out fired up.”

Published on November 28, 2024 at 12:20 am

Contact Nicholas: njalumka@syr.edu