Syracuse Basketball: Cole Anthony helps UNC upset Orange in dome finale

Cole Anthony proved too much for Syracuse basketball to overcome. Here are all the details on the Orange getting upset by North Carolina in the dome.

Syracuse basketball fell to 16-13 on the year and back to .500 in ACC play at 9-9 after a 92 to 79 loss to Cole Anthony and the North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday.

This game between Syracuse and North Carolina seemed to have a little something extra. That’s not unusual in these matchups historically, but this year it featured two teams that have struggled to live up to expectations.

Something else that added an extra level of juice was the celebrities in attendance: six-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, former Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelman, and Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon.

If all that wasn’t enough John Wallace at halftime became the 15th player in program history to have his jersey retired.

And oh yeah there was also a basketball game being played.

At the beginning of the game, Syracuse and UNC traded blows and were knotted up at 17. Then out of nowhere, the Tar Heels went on a ridiculous run fueled by second-chance opportunities and inspired offense.

That 16-0 run suddenly put North Carolina in the driver’s seat and then the Orange answered. Buddy Boeheim who entered as a game-time decision after spraining his ankle in the last game just started to go off.

Also, Bourama Sidibe continued his stellar play from the Pittsburgh game. He did a nice job on the glass and just played with a good intensity and remained active.

Although after surviving the first North Carolina run, the Orange succumbed to another one led by perimeter shooting.

In the first six minutes of the second half, UNC hit six triple tries reopening the lead once again for the Tar Heels. The difference in the contest was star freshman Cole Anthony.

Anthony finished with 25 points and was absolutely lethal from beyond the arc going 7-of-11.

Final nuggets:

• Elijah Hughes officially joined the exclusive 1,000 point club at Syracuse during the game vs UNC. He finished with 16 points.
• Bourama Sidibe proved that the career day vs Pitt earlier this week wasn’t a fluke and he’s starting to really come into his own: 17 points, 14 rebounds, and registered five blocks.
• Orange continue to struggle from long range and that was really the difference in the game.
• Also, shoutout to the lone senior on the Syracuse hoops squad, Shaun Belbey, who enjoyed his moment in the sun during Senior day at the dome on Saturday evening.

This was the final home game of the regular season for the Orange. Up next the team will take to the road for the final two contests of the year starting on Tuesday, March 3 vs the Boston College Eagles with tip-off set for 7:00 p.m.