Syracuse holds off a pesky Northeastern team to grab their eighth victory of the season

The Orange fended off several second half pushes from the Huskies and put the game on ice at the foul line

Dec 20, 2025; Syracuse, New York, USA; Northeastern Huskies forward Youri Fritz (7) takes a shot near the basket as Syracuse Orange forward William Kyle III (42) defends in the first half at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Syracuse had a listless start to the game, but a simple switch to up the tempo keyed an early surge to take control over Northeastern and eventually hold off several charges to secure a 91-83 victory at the JMA Wireless Dome.

Less than eight minutes into the game, Syracuse head coach Adrian Autry called a timeout with his team trailing, 14-9.  The Orange (8-4) started using their full court press after the break, which energized the team, driving a 14-2 run to take a 23-16 lead at the under-8 media timeout.  While the pressure was not hindering the Huskies (4-6) in the backcourt, they committed five turnovers during that SU burst.

While the barrage of turnovers did not last throughout the game, Syracuse made up for it by punishing the guests on the backboards in the second half.  The Orange grabbed 13 offensive rebounds after the break, keying a 24-18 rebounding advantage in the half.  Those extra shots yielded 12 second chance points.

The Orange controlled the rest of the first half, allowing them some breathing room

SU’s good play continued after that initial first half surge, as they scored six of the next eight points to push the margin into double figures at 29-18.  The Huskies fought back, chipping the lead down to six, but the Orange answered with six straight points late in the half to help push them to a 41-31 lead at the break.

SU quickly stretched their lead out to a dozen when the action resumed, but Northeastern eventually worked the margin back down to seven.  Nate Kingz scored five quick points to jumpstart a 9-1 Syracuse run, which pushed their lead out to 59-44 less than seven minutes after halftime.

The Orange had their lead out to 15 points a second time, but the Huskies quickly took a bite out of it with a pair of 3-pointers to draw within 65-56 and force Autry to call another time out.  Northeastern continued to chip away, building on those triples to make a 10-2 run that had them within seven points.

Northeastern had one last surge before SU could put the game in the win column.

Kiyan Anthony scored four points on consecutive possessions to lift the lead back into double digits, starting a streak of seven straight that eventually built a 74-60 margin.  The Huskies had one more push, unleashing a 12-3 burst that narrowed the gap to 80-75 with just over two minutes to play.

After struggling from the line for much of the second half, SU put away the guests by making 11-of-12 foul shots in the final two minutes to hold on for the win.  They finished the game shooting 34-for-48 from the foul line with 34 attempts in the second half.

Only six players scored for the Orange, but each of them had at least nine points, led by Naithan George’s game-high 22 points, including connecting on 12-of-14 foul shots.  Anthony had 18 points while Tyler Betsey, Kingz, and William Kyle III each had 14.  J.J. Starling finished with nine.

Ryan Williams topped Northeastern with 20 points.  Xander Alarie had a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds and Youri Fritz added 17 points before fouling out.  Mike Loughnane chipped in with nine points.

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