PITTSBURGH — Twenty-eight minutes into the night, Tyus Battle hadn’t scored. His floaters weren’t going. He got stripped when driving through the lane. He hit every part of the rim on his misses.

When he missed a layup early in the second half, with Syracuse’s lead shrinking and the arena getting louder, his father, Gary, crossed his arms. He looked straight toward the court in a Syracuse hat and orange sweatshirt. He shook his head. Then, in a moment, Battle ended his drought with a right-handed floater in the middle of the paint. From Petersen Events Center section 124, row 2, Gary held up two fingers, his son’s point total at that point.

Battle struggled to get going, finishing with six points and three boards in Syracuse’s (16-6, 7-2 Atlantic Coast) 65-56 win at Pittsburgh (12-10, 2-7). He shot 2-for-13 overall and 0-for-3 from deep. Yet he said what he’s always said after rare nights like these: It was just a blip, a rough night, and he’ll bounce back in three days against Florida State.

“Shots just didn’t fall,” Battle said. “I always come into play. I’ll just come ready to play Tuesday … I’m just trying to impact the game in any way possible. That’s really it.”

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Rarely, if ever, has an unsettling notion sprouted in Battle’s mind. He knows his capabilities — that he can drive by anybody and only help defense can stop him — and how quickly he can get hot, changing the tenor of the SU offense with blow-bys and step-back jumpers. He doesn’t need to quell any worries because he said he doesn’t have them. Not during games.

Syracuse won its ninth game out of its last 11 and sits at 7-2 in conference play, the program’s best start to ACC play in five years. Battle still leads the team in scoring, with 17.5 points per game. He wasn’t near that total on Saturday, and players said his fluctuation in scoring — 10, 10, 31 and six points, respectively, over his past four games — is just a fluke.

“So much of what he does nobody really sees,” said senior point guard Frank Howard, who had 15 points and four steals. “Not just drive-and-kicks. You could say he didn’t have a good game, but a lot of our plays came from here or Oshae (Brissett). That’s what I was telling him: ‘Don’t worry about your points. We have other guys. Every night’s not going to be great.’”

“He opens a lot up for us,” Howard added. “He defended well tonight, too.”

Alexandra Moreo | Senior Staff Photographer

What Battle also brought is a presence. Battle, sometimes running the point, had five assists. He turned the ball over just once. He draws two defenders when he drives and shifts the defense to his side.

His looks were there. He still created his own shots. He handled ball pressure well and, because he’s sometimes in the point guard slot, doesn’t always fall into the positions most suitable for big scoring numbers. He could score less and run more offense against Pitt because the scoring was coming from elsewhere.

“I didn’t think we would survive a game when Tyus has four points late in the game,” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. “He’s been so consistent for us all year long. He just couldn’t get the ball in the basket. He had great looks, great drives, with guys pushing on him hard.”

Battle didn’t score much, but he set up teammates who did enough. Now comes Florida State and the beginnings of the stiffer part of ACC play. The games Battle knows he’ll have to keep off-nights limited for SU to keep winning.

After the final buzzer sounded Saturday, Syracuse players walked toward the locker room near the team bench. Assistant coach Gerry McNamara found Battle, told him to relax, that these games happen. He said he’s a great player who just had an off night. Just a blip. As Battle walked off the floor, with McNamara’s right arm wrapped around him, he wore a wide smile.

Published on February 2, 2019 at 9:46 pm

Contact Matthew: mguti100@syr.edu | @MatthewGut21