Syracuse Blown Out at #7 North Carolina
If you were hoping Saturday's game at #7 North Carolina was when Syracuse basketball would be competitive against a ranked opponent, you were severely disappointed. The Tar Heels dominated the Orange 103-67 to drop SU to 11-5 (2-3) on the season. Next up is another road test, at Pittsburgh, on Tuesday.
Syracuse now has five losses on the season, each by at least 17 points, of which four were to teams currently in the top 25.
Saturday's contest was only competitive for the first few minutes. Syracuse led briefly at 3-2 as a Chris Bell triple started the scoring for the Orange. The Tar Heels then went on a 9-2 run to take control, which was followed by an 8-0 run to push the advantage to double digits. A 14-4 run midway through the first half pushed UNC's lead to over 20 points and all but put the game away.
The second half actually started strong for SU with a 9-2 run out of the break. However, North Carolina answered with an 8-0 spurt. Syracuse would not seriously threaten the rest of the way.
North Carolina's size and speed gave the Orange fits all game. The guards routinely got into the lane to create for others, and the size led to a huge advantage in points on the paint (58-32) as well as on the boards (53-30). That combined with Syracuse's struggles in the half court offensively led to the lopsided defeat.
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