Syracuse rallies, but falls to Pittsburgh in overtime, 71-69

The Orange fought back from a 12-point deficit, but could not finish the comeback

Mar 7, 2026; Syracuse, New York, USA; Syracuse Orange forward William Kyle III (42) dunks against Pittsburgh Panthers guard Barry Dunning Jr. (22) during the first half at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-Imagn Images | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Syracuse rallied back from a 12-point deficit with 11 minutes remaining in regulation, but dropped a 71-69 overtime game to Pittsburgh at the JMA Wireless Dome when William Kyle III was called for goaltending with 4.3 seconds remaining.  Following an Orange timeout, Naithan George got off a contested heave from around halfcourt, but it caught backboard and rim, but nothing else.

The Orange wrapped their regular season at 15-16 overall and 6-12 ACC play while the Panthers improved to 12-19 and 4-13 in conference action.

Almost the final 12 minutes of the game were played with a one-score margin.  The penultimate Syracuse possession ended with Donnie Freeman being forced to fire a 3-pointer as the shot clock would down.  Following a Pitt timeout, Nojus Indrusaitis was credited with a basket on a goaltending call against Kyle with 4.3 seconds on the clock.

SU was shorthanded in the game, as they were without the services of reserves Kiyan Anthony and Sadiq White Jr.  That set them on more equal ground with Pitt, who plays little more than a six-man rotation this season, in part due to some long-term injuries.

Offense was a problem for both teams in the game

Both sides struggled to score consistently during the contest, with Pitt’s 44.1 percent mark from the field being the better of the two sides.  SU shot only 39.0 percent overall, but offset that by making 16-of-17 foul shots in the game.

The Orange offense got off to a lethargic start, generating only a pair of Kyle alley-oops as they fell into an 11-4 hole before four minutes elapsed.  Pitt stretched their advantage to nine points as Cameron Corhen took over their offense, scoring nine consecutive Panther points, but SU methodically chipped away, stringing together eight straight to pull within 20-19 coming out of the under-eight media timeout.

Pittsburgh pushed the lead back out to five points shortly after, but Syracuse quickly erased the margin.  The visitors posted four points in response to regain control, but the Orange closed the half in style, though, posting the final seven points to finish a 12-4 run and grab a 31-28 halftime lead.

Syracuse got a big second half run to force their way back into the game

The SU offense cooled off at intermission and the Panthers responded by starting the second half by outscoring them, 17-4, to take a 45-35 lead and draw a timeout from the hosts.  Pitt pushed their lead out to a dozen with 11 minutes left, but Syracuse came to life, as Naithan George and Donnie Freeman combined to run off ten straight points to make it a 49-47 game and force a Panther timeout with 7:41 on the clock.

The Orange would knot the game at 52 on a Tyler Betsey 3-pointer less than two minutes later.  The game remained within one possession either way the rest of the game with both sides missing 3-pointers in the final 15 seconds, sending the contest to overtime.

George led all scorers in the game, connecting on four 3’s for nearly half his 26 points.  Freeman posted an 18-point, 13-rebound double-double.  Kingz finished with 14 points in the contest.

Cameron Corhen paced the Panthers with 21 points.  Barry Dunning Jr. had 17 points and Indrusaitis chipped in with 16.

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