In regular-season finale, Syracuse basketball plays one of its best games - love that

On senior night, before an announced crowd of 20,274, Syracuse basketball halted a six-contest losing streak to fellow Atlantic Coast Conference squad Virginia.

The Orange, a group that has struggled throughout the 2024-25 regular season, played one of its best games this term on Saturday evening at the JMA Wireless Dome. The 'Cuse, not an overly impressive shooting unit in 2024-25, connected on nearly 60 percent from the field and held UVA, a good 3-point shooting bunch, to a mere 20.0 percent from beyond the arc.

Buoyed by great performances from some of its players who walked on senior night, Syracuse basketball handled the Cavaliers on the HIll by a final count of 84-70.

It's proven a disappointing and frustrating 2024-25 for the 'Cuse players, coaching staff and fan base. And barring a miracle run to the ACC Tournament title this week in Charlotte, N.C., the Orange will miss the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight year.

However, to see Syracuse basketball players, especially its graduate students and seniors, grab a victory during their last home game in college, was absolutely, positively beautiful.

Syracuse basketball ended the regular season on a high note.

With this triumph, the Orange moved to 7-14 in its all-time series with the Cavaliers. The 'Cuse, the No. 14 seed, will face No. 11 seed Florida State on Tuesday, March 11, in the ACC Tournament's first round.

Syracuse basketball entered Saturday evening's affair having lost two straight, both on the road, to Virginia Tech and then SMU, after the Orange had second-half, double-digit leads in each ACC encounter.

Still, the 'Cuse (13-18, 7-13 in the ACC) battled tough versus Virginia. The Orange hit 59.6 percent from the field, 42.9 percent from 3-point land and 84.2 percent from the free-throw line. UVA made 51.9 percent from the field, but the Cavaliers weren't good from long range.

Syracuse basketball, in other statistical categories, led 31-17 on the glass, 20-8 in assists and 14-7 in second-chance points, among other arenas. The Orange, though, committed 15 turnovers, as compared to 12 miscues for Virginia. Still, Syracuse basketball led 18-17 in points off turnovers.

Graduate student center Eddie Lampkin Jr. was tremendous, as he tallied 25 points and 10 rebounds.

Senior forward Jyare Davis and senior wing Lucas Taylor each collected 15 points. Senior point guard Jaquan Carlos chipped in five points, seven assists, three rebounds, one steal and just one turnover.

The Orange is trending toward its fewer number of wins in a season dating back to 1969-70, which makes me sad. But on senior night, the 'Cuse played quite well, and that is something all the team's graduate students and seniors, hopefully, can always cherish.