Tyus Battle scored 23 points and Elijah Hughes added 21 to lead No. 16 Syracuse to an 84-70 win over visiting Morehead State at the Carrier Dome on Saturday night.

The Orange (2-0) also got double-doubles from Oshae Brissett (17 points, 13 rebounds) and Paschal Chukwu (14 points, 10 rebounds).

Jordan Walker scored 24 points for Morehead State (1-2), which was coming off an 80-70 loss at UConn and playing at Syracuse for the first time since 1987 as part of the 2K Classic benefitting the Wounded Warrior Project.

Syracuse slashed its way to 34 points in the paint and made 25 of 30 free throws to make up for shooting just 3 of 16 from 3-point range. The Orange also outrebounded the Eagles 51-37, getting 15 second-chance points off 17 offensive boards.

Senior point guard Frank Howard sat out again for the Orange but is nearing a return from an ankle injury. Battle moved over to start at the point for the second straight game and after missing his first six shots, finished 7 of 15 from the field.

Syracuse built a double-digit lead within six minutes and pushed the advantage to 25-11 when Brissett attacked the basket for his third three-point play at the midway point of the first half.

Morehead State went on a 16-3 run to cut the lead to 28-27 after 15 minutes.

Coming out of halftime with a 36-30 advantage, Syracuse pulled away with a 12-0 run and never let the lead get under 10 the rest of the way.

Syracuse plays next Thursday against UConn at Madison Square Garden.

--Field Level Media