The Syracuse Basketball Team Secures Much-Needed Win Over Ranked Foe

This was a much needed win for the Syracuse basketball program. Up to this point they hadn’t registered a quality win, but now they have it.

The Syracuse basketball squad has a razor-thin margin for error the rest of this season, if the Orange wants to entertain any hopes of reaching the post-season, beyond the ACC Tournament.

Desperate to install a signature victory on its pedestrian resume, SU built an 18-point, first-half lead over No. 6 Florida State before holding on for dear life in an 82-72 triumph with nearly 25,000 fans watching from inside the Carrier Dome.

The ‘Cuse improves to 13-9, 5-4 in conference competition, while the Seminoles fall to 18-4, 6-3. FSU has lost two in a row to unranked teams, albeit both instances on the road.

All-time, Syracuse now holds a 7-2 edge versus Florida State, and none of those wins will likely prove more critical than the one that the Orange landed on Saturday afternoon.

So far in the 2016-17 campaign, SU had failed to get past a team in the top 25. The FSU victory represents the ‘Cuse’s first over a ranked opponent in four tries, according to ESPN.com.

The Orange is 13-2 at home, including 5-0 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. But Syracuse remains without a win outside of Central New York, and that will have to change should SU look to enter the NCAA Tournament conversation.

Regardless, besting the No. 6 in the country is a solid place from where to construct momentum. Although, I have to say, students storming the country after the final buzzer sounded is super lame. I get that Syracuse is having a down year to date; however, this still is a powerhouse program. Have some pride!

"Check out this tweet from ESPN analyst Seth Greenberg: “After a short evaluation. Illegal court storm @Cuse_MBB. You went to the Final 4 last season. Your coach is in the HOF. GREAT WIN BUT……”"

Exactly.

The ‘Cuse 2-3 zone had an excellent outing. Florida State scores 84 points a game and only managed 72 this go-round. The Seminoles also connects on 49 percent from the field and shot 38 percent versus the Orange.

On the flip side, SU’s 82 points are about six above its per-contest average.

Syracuse, despite facing an extremely tall FSU roster, claimed the rebounding edge, 42-39. The Orange also had more overall assists (20 dimes on 25 made baskets), steals and blocks.

My two primary criticisms are that the ‘Cuse committed 16 turnovers (15 for Florida State), and senior Tyler Roberson laid an egg from the free-throw line (0-of-6, with the rest of the guys going 23-of-24).

Grad transfers Andrew White III and John Gillon, along with sophomore Tyler Lydon and Roberson,

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had monster days.

White paced the way with 24 points on 8-of-16 from the field, as well as nine rebounds and four steals. His defense is really improving. Gillon produced 21 points, 11 assists and just two turnovers.

More than anything else, as Florida State gained steam and cut the deficit to only a few points on multiple occasions, Gillon had some big-time distributions for clutch buckets to prevent the Seminoles from ever retaking the lead.

We should also commend Gillon for going 13-of-14 from the charity stripe, which helped seal the deal as the contest wound down.

Lydon contributed 14 points, 11 boards and six blocks – he also threw down a ridiculous put-back dunk off a missed 3-pointer from freshman Tyus Battle that better get a SportsCenter Top 10 inclusion.

Roberson, putting aside his woes from the free-throw line, chipped in 10 points, seven rebounds, three steals and two blocks.

Similar to the tight victory earlier this week against Wake Forest, Syracuse hung tough versus Florida State, the key difference being that the Seminoles are a legit Final Four contender. The Orange’s 44-26 advantage at halftime quickly started to evaporate, and the prospect of a second-stanza collapse became a reality.

But SU held its ground. Perhaps our boys are peaking at the right juncture. At the very least, the ‘Cuse has collected an initial marquee win, as well as the confidence that it can effectively collide with top-10 outfits.

The schedule coming up is brutal, as the Orange clashes with a bunch of highly ranked ACC counterparts, although many of those match-ups are at home.

What now needs to happen is a road victory. And Syracuse has an opportunity to accomplish precisely that in its next battle, when SU heads to N.C. State on Wednesday, Feb. 1.

Next: 3 Keys to Syracuse Basketball’s Victory Over No. 6 Florida State

Keep the positive vibes flowing, ‘Cuse Nation!

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