A thriller in the Carrier Dome gives the Orange its third-straight conference win.
The Orange faithful were in for a treat; coming off a close win this past Saturday against Georgia Tech, the “loud house” was packed for another ACC battle that came down to the wire. This time, it took overtime to decide the winner.
Rakeem Christmas struggled in his final home game at SU against the top-ranked Cavalier defense.
Syracuse started strong defensively in Monday’s matchup with No. 2 Virginia, but it was the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season-champion Cavaliers that eventually dominated both ends en route to a 59-47 victory on Syracuse’s senior night at the Carrier Dome.
With the win, the Cavaliers clinched their second-straight ACC regular-season title, becoming the first program other than Duke or North Carolina to do so since North Carolina State in 1974.
The final home game of the season features a number of key story lines.
Syracuse's home schedule for the 2014-15 season goes out with a bang tonight, as the Orange will battle No. 2 Virginia at the Carrier Dome at 7 p.m. The game can be seen on ESPN.
Although SU is already banned from postseason competiton, tonight's contest still features plenty of reasons to head to the Loud House or tune into "The Worldwide Leader." Here are a few things to watch for tonight:
The Orange shot a dismal 28 percent in the first frame and couldn't pull through in a very physical contest.
With Syracuse trailing by one point with 40 seconds remaining, Michael Gbinije saw Rakeem Christmas coming to the top of the key to set a ball screen.
He saw Christmas set his feet, or so he thought, and decided to drive through the lane for a potential game-tying shot. But before he could get there, he heard a whistle.
The future NBA Draft lottery pick overcame a sluggish first half to lead the Blue Devils to a comeback victory.
According to Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim, Jahlil Okafor will be the No. 1 pick in the upcoming NBA Draft should he declare.
But before embarking to the professional ranks, the star freshman showed a record-tying 35,446 fans on Saturday evening why he merits such high praise.
Okafor bolstered his résumé for ACC Player of the Year by pouring in 23 points and 13 rebounds to help No. 4 Duke rally for a hard-fought 80-72 victory over the Orange in the Carrier Dome.
The junior's buzzer beater helped SU overcome a sloppy performance on both ends of the court.
Although it came one calendar day after the actual holiday, Syracuse’s showdown against Virginia Tech on Tuesday night felt like something out of the hit 1993 film “Groundhog Day.” Just as Bill Murray’s character lived the same exact day again and again, the Orange followed the same exact script on its home floor.
Struggle to make shots early on, pull even by halftime, fall behind by a sizable margin, and attempt a furious comeback in the closing minutes.
With Rakeem Christmas battling foul trouble, the Orange's secondary scoring options led the team to a rebound win.
For 17 minutes of Syracuse’s game against Boston College, Orange center Rakeem Christmas found himself in an unfamiliar place: the SU bench.
Syracuse’s leading scorer couldn’t escape foul trouble on Tuesday night, but his teammates stepped up in his absence. Four other Orange players scored in double figures to lead the Orange (14-5, 5-1 Atlantic Coast) to a 69-61 victory over the Eagles (8-9, 0-5 Atlantic Coast).
The senior poured in a career-high 35 points as the Orange continued its hot start in conference play.
With freshman forward Chris McCullough now sidelined for the rest of the season, Syracuse will need to move forward without half of its potent one-two punch inside the paint.
But on Tuesday night against Wake Forest, the other half proved he’s capable of delivering knockout blows all by himself.