Syracuse men’s lacrosse: Duke preview and game thread

The Orange are looking for a bounce-back as they return to ACC play on the road in Durham.

The Syracuse Orange are back in conference play this weekend, looking to get back in the win column as they travel down to Durham for a matchup with the Duke Blue Devils.

This is a crucial game for the postseason resumes of both the No.8/7 Orange and the No. 13/12 Blue Devils. ‘Cuse is currently No. 9 in RPI, while Duke is No. 10, meaning both teams are hanging out in the back half of the eight at-large selections for the NCAA Tournament. The winner of this game will add another solid win to their resume, while the loser will be feeling increased pressure next weekend and in the ACC Tournament.

Face-off is set for 2 PM on the ACC Network.

• All-time series: 26th meeting; Syracuse leads, 15-10
• Last meeting: Duke W, 18-13, on May 3, 2024 in ACC Tournament Semifinals
• Syracuse this season: 9-3 overall, 2-0 ACC
• Duke this season: 9-4 overall, 0-2 ACC

The Blue Devils are coming off a tight, 8-7 loss to North Carolina last weekend in which they had a lead most of the game and lost it in the fourth quarter.

They’ve got notable wins over St. Joseph’s, Michigan, Richmond and BU, and their losses are to Princeton, Denver, Notre Dame and UNC.

Scouting Duke

Duke has lost three out of their last four games, a stretch that’s been defined by a lack of scoring and searching for an offensive identity. Multiple offensive players have been oscillating back-and-forth between attack and midfield, especially as of late, as the coaches look for the right combination on offense.

In those four games, they’re averaging just 8.0 goals per game. The recent positive, however, has been their defense, which has given up just 15 goals total in their last two games against BU and North Carolina.

On the season, Duke ranks 21st nationally in scoring offense (12.38), 23rd in scoring defense (9.85) and 20th in face-off percentage (54.1).

Their best offensive player has been attacker Eric Malever (24G, 27A), a Maryland transfer who leads them in goals, assists and points. He’s been the leader of their attack unit, but the question has been whose joined him.

Recently, it’s been Andrew McAdorey (15G, 14A) alongside. He’s played midfield throughout the bulk of his Duke career, but he’s been on attack the past two games. Max Sloat (20G, 13A) has been the inverse to McAdorey, playing attack for much of the season before moving back up to midfield in recent games.

Benn Johnston (22G, 5A) is their second-leading goal scorer and rounds out the trio of returners who lead the Duke offense alongside the transfer, Malever.

They will run three players out to take face-offs, so they have a bevy of options to counter Johnny Mullen’s style. Luke Engelke (94-of-167, 56.3), Ben McCarthy (60-of-114, 52.6) and Cal Girard (24-of-48, 50.0) all have good numbers this season.

The Duke defense has a lot of big, physical presences led by Charlie Johnson (24CT, 21GB) and Henry Bard (12CT, 10GB). Their defensive midfield has some real players with All-American shortie Aidan McGuire (24CT, 46GB) and LSM Mac Christmas (16GB, 6G), whose a real threat in transition. The Orange midfield versus the Duke rope unit should be a very interesting matchup in this one.

Goalie Patrick Jameison (119SV) is a strong figure in net with a 9.83 GAA and a 51.1 save percentage.