Syracuse shut down No. 13 Tennessee in the second half Tuesday night and held on in the final seconds for a big 62-60 victory. The victory, which is part of the ACC-SEC Challenge, is undoubtedly the biggest of the season for the Orange. It also snapped a three-game losing streak and marked the program’s first win over Tennessee since Nov. 28, 1993.
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Naturally, that caused quite a storm in the courtroom at the JMA Wireless Dome.
Tennessee struggled to pull away from Syracuse throughout the first half, and the Orange actually threw in a bucket just before the buzzer to take a two-point lead into halftime. But ultimately, Syracuse completely shut down the Vols late in the second half to take control of the game.
The Orange held Tennessee without a field goal for more than four full minutes down the stretch, ultimately establishing a four-point lead with just two minutes left in the game. But Jaylen Carey and Bishop Boswell broke that dry spell and each hit a quick jumper to tie the game again with just 31 seconds left. Finally, it was William Kyle who made a single free throw to put Syracuse back in the lead, setting up a final shot for the Vols.
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Ja’Kobi Gillespie caught an inbounds pass in the corner with just nine seconds left and drove to the rim before throwing it to Carey, who had a good view of the rim from the center lane. But his shot was off target and was quickly rebounded by the Orange, who held on and sealed their two-point victory after scoring another free throw.
Nate Kingz led the game with 19 points and seven rebounds, and JJ Starling added 12 points. The Orange shot just 5 of 19 from the 3-point line as a group, although they held Tennessee to just four baskets from behind the arc to make up for it.
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Syracuse is now 5-3 on the year with the win, which perhaps came at the perfect time for the program. La Naranja had a lot of problems at the Players Era Festival last week. They played all three games, including a 31-point loss to No. 10 Iowa State on day three, and couldn’t keep up with the Cyclones, Houston and Kansas in what was their first real test of the season. While it was just one win, the Orange finally achieved a win in Quad 1 on their fourth try. That should be a significant boost for them entering ACC play in the coming weeks.
Carey led Tennessee with 22 points and nine rebounds off the bench. Nate Ament added 11 points, but he himself had seven of the team’s 17 turnovers, and Gillespie scored 10 points. Those two were the only Volunteer starters to reach double figures. Their 60 points were easily the fewest they scored all season.
Tennessee defeated then-No. 3 Houston in a thrilling battle at the Players Era Festival last week in Las Vegas. But that somehow didn’t give the Vols a spot in the event’s championship game and sent them into the race for third place with Kansas. The Jayhawks then handed the Vols their first loss of the season after rallying from a double-digit hole in the second half.
The schedule won’t be any easier for Tennessee either. The Vols will face No. 14 Illinois next Saturday and then host No. 6 Louisville next week. If this losing streak gets out of control, they may enter SEC play in a pretty tough position, which is not something many thought would be the case just seven days ago.