The junior forward played his first complete game of the season, leading Syracuse to a win over Elon.
In his first game of the season, Tyler Roberson came out a dropped a goose egg against Lehigh. He played so poor that in the post-game presser, Jim Boeheim stated "I didn't see much," when asked about Roberson's performance. The Syracuse Orange forward was able to get on the boards in his second game, but still only put up a half-dozen points.
Tonight against Elon, Roberson put together his best performance of the season scoring 20 points and pulling down 16 rebounds, leading Syracuse to a 66-55 win.
In the second half, Roberson made some big plays to lift Syracuse. He'd grab a Malachi Richardson air ball and put it up just slightly over the rim to give Syracuse a 41-39 lead. Later, he'd tip in a Trevor Cooney miss to extend Syracuse's lead to 49-42.
Michael Gbinije's night was understated by first half foul trouble and Roberson's performance, but the fifth-year senior scored 16 points on only nine shots.
Roberson will be a big key going forward. He won't have to lead Syracuse in scoring, but he needs to make his presence felt every night on the boards. With rebounding being one of Syracuse's biggest weaknesses, Roberson will have to lead the charge in that department.
Cooney finished the night with eight points, leaving him just two points shy of 1,000 career points.
Syracuse moves to 3-0 on the season and will get ready for Charlotte on Wednesday. Syracuse will face its first ranked opponent of the season the following day when it plays either Michigan or UConn.
