Syracuse Comes Back from 20 Down to Stun Notre Dame
Syracuse trailed by as many as 20 points in the second half, but closed out the game on a 40-12 run to knock off Notre Dame in the Carrier Dome. Trailing 55-35, Syracuse went to the press, and forced the Irish into bad shots as well as turnovers. That allowed Buddy Boeheim to get several open looks and shoot the Orange back into the game. Syracuse won 75-67 to improve to 13-6 (7-5) on the season and keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive.
It was the first time since January 2005 since Syracuse came back from 20 points down to win a game when the Orange topped Rutgers.
During the comeback, Buddy Boeheim scored 17 points including four made three pointers as he provided the offensive portion of the second half surge. The defensive portion came from implementing the press, which helped force Notre Dame into eight turnovers during a 10 minute stretch. Kadary Richmond had three steals during that time. Robert Braswell's rotation in the zone was a huge factor as well, as he prevented the open looks Notre Dame was receiving earlier in the game.
Braswell finished with just three points and five rebounds, but his impact went well beyond the box score.
The Irish started the game 10-18 from beyond the arc, but finished just two of its last 13 down the stretch as the Syracuse defense intensified.
Buddy Boeheim finished with a career high 29 points including 6-10 from beyond the arc. Marek Dolezaj was the only other Syracuse player in double figures, as he added 18 points, six rebounds and four assists. Richmond scored six points and had three steals. Quincy Guerrier grabbed 14 rebounds.
Notre Dame dominated the boards early, and but the Orange outrebounded Notre Dame 22-11 in the second half to win the battle by five overall.
Trey Wertz led the Irish with 17 points including five made three pointers. Nate Laszewski added 11 points and 12 rebounds. Juwan Durham had 10 points for Notre Dame, all of which came early in the first half.
Syracuse is next in action at Duke on Monday. That game tips at 7:00 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN. The game will be a quad one opportunity for the Orange.
