Hold up, Hokies: Syracuse basketball defeats Virginia Tech 71-69 (Brent Axe recap) - syracuse.com

Hold up, Hokies: Syracuse basketball defeats Virginia Tech 71-69 (Brent Axe recap) - syracuse.com

Once you get past Duke, Florida State and Louisville at the top, the ACC is a mass of teams with records hovering around .500 in league play trying to separate from the pack.

With its 71-69 win over Virginia Tech on Saturday at the Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va., maybe the Syracuse University basketball team is showing it has the mettle to escape the Royal Rumble in league play and make a run at March Madness.

Syracuse held off a furious second-half rally by the Hokies for the two-point win. It was the complete opposite of what happened at the Carrier Dome just 12 days ago when Syracuse watched a nine-point lead wilt as the Hokies went on a 21-4 blitz to beat the Orange.

Not this time.

“They make 15 threes,’’ Jim Boeheim said, “you’ve got to have a lot of resilience and character to be able to hang in there.’’.

When Syracuse woke up the day after its first loss to Virginia Tech, it had a record of 8-7, the worst 15-game mark since the 1968-69 season (4-11) and a 1-3 conference record.

Syracuse has now won three straight games and holds a record 11-7 (4-3 ACC) which includes wins at Virginia and Virginia Tech.

That’s the thing with this Syracuse team. They have shown a tremendous amount of heart, grit and timely scoring in this three-game winning streak.

Once you think you’re out on this team, they pull you back in.

The Sunny Side

Paint Power

Syracuse forward Quincy Guerrier (1) drives on Virginia Tech guard Isaiah Wilkins (1) during a game on Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020, at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va. (Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com)

Syracuse basketball lives and dies by the 3-pointer, right? Not when Virginia Tech is on the other side of the court.

The Orange dominated the Hokies 34-12 in the paint on Saturday. The Orange exploited its size advantage and Virginia Tech’s plan to work the perimeter and live and die by the 3 itself.

Syracuse out-scored Virginia Tech 28-14 in the paint and out-rebounded the Hokies 34-33 during their first matchup back on Jan. 7, but it was the Hokies that snuck out a 67-63 win.

On Saturday, the Orange’s paint power and rebounding edge (36-33) were enough to squeak out a victory.

The Orange ate some nails for breakfast and challenged Virginia Tech time-after-time in the paint.

Buddy Boeheim not only connected five times from beyond the arc, he flashed a newfound affinity for the dribble drive and hit a few tough jumpers in the paint including a confident jumper in the paint that put SU up 59-53 with 7:01 remaining.

Elijah Hughes had to grind the ball inside in the second half, backing down a Virginia Tech defender with several dribbles and putting in a smooth baseline jumper to put SU up 57-53.

With 5:28 to go, Quincy Guerrier pump-faked at the 3-point line and drove in to draw the foul and complete the 3-point play to put SU up 62-59.

Marek Dolezaj put the Orange up 68-65 on a layup with 1:37 to go and was a rebounding force inside with his third double-double of the season.

Hughes’ jumper in the paint with :58 remaining put SU up by three (70-67) and a lead it would not give up.

You couldn’t spell survive without SU on Saturday and interior play was the primary reason. The Orange made 23 of 36 shots it took inside the 3-point arc (63.8 percent).

Even the head coach couldn’t believe it when learning of the Orange’s prowess inside against the Hokies.

“It’s hard to even believe that tape,’’ Boeheim said. “That’s one where you have to watch the tape because I didn’t see that."

“We’re not a team that tries to score in there,’’ Boeheim said.

Buddy Ball

Syracuse guard Buddy Boeheim (35) during a game against Virginia Tech on Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020, at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va. (Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com)

With just over 13:00 remaining in the first half, Syracuse’s offense was struggling and the Orange trailed the Hokies 14-10.

That’s when Jackson Thomas Boeheim went on a jaw-dropping surge.

In a 20-5 Syracuse run, Boeheim scored 18 straight points on the Hokies. Boeheim had four 3-pointers in the outburst.

Boeheim is one of the nicest players on the SU roster and flashes an “aw shucks” smile in postgame conversations, but during that run he was a man possessed. Virginia Tech could not guard him and he let them know it, screaming as much when he ran up the floor after his third 3-point shot of that flash in time.

Boeheim finished the game 10-for-20 from the field and 5-for-13 on 3-pointers for a career-high 26 points.

Boeheim entered Saturday’s game averaging 3.65 3-pointers per game. The school record is held by Gerry McNamara (3.39). Boeheim leads the ACC in 3-pointers made and ranks in the Top 10 in the country in that department.

Boeheim’s ability and confidence on dribble drives and utilizing his 6-6 frame to score inside is improving. His defense is starting to come around as well.

If you still hold on to the notion that Boeheim plays simply because of his last name, I’d suggest you keep it to yourself from now on.

Hughes Hangs In

Syracuse forward Elijah Hughes (33) during a game against Virginia Tech on Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020, at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va. (Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com)

Hughes walked into the Syracuse locker room at halftime shaking his head after a 1-of-8 shooting stumble in the first half. He struggled to break free from a Virginia Tech pressure man-to-man defense that hounded his every move.

He found the space he needed in the second half to give Boeheim a dance partner, scoring 17 points on 6-of-18 shooting with seven rebounds.

A trip to the free throw line early in the second half seemed to reset Hughes. A jumper in the paint put SU ahead 49-37 with 14:49 to go.

While Hughes had to use the dribble and grind in the paint to earn most of his points, his one 3-point shot of the game was huge. Hughes answered a 3-pointer by Virginia Tech’s Landers Nolley to put SU up 65-58 with 5:00 to go.

It was one last jumper with :58 on the clock that gave Syracuse the slim cushion it needed to hang on for the victory.

Hughes is best know for using a fluid shooting stroke to score. On Saturday, he proved he can grab a lunch pail and grind it out.

Dolezaj Gets it Done

Syracuse forward Marek Dolezaj (21) has a loose ball pass him during a game against Virginia Tech on Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020, at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va. (Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com)

Dolezaj got out the glue gun again for the Orange, recording his third double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds against the Hokies.

Dolezaj shot 5-of-7 as SU’s guards looked to find him inside. Dolezaj doesn’t have the prettiest shot in the world at times, but it is effective. SU coaches have been encouraging him to seek more shots in the paint to give the Orange offense some balance.

“We had some opportunities for Marek inside,’’ Jim Boeheim said. “We wanted to get Marek the ball in some of those situations down there and Marek was good.’’

Even if Virginia Tech wanted to have some resemblance of an inside game, Dolezaj shut it down with 10 of his 11 rebounds coming on the defensive end. His 11th rebound with three seconds remaining off an ill-advised 3-point attempt by Virginia Tech’s Landers Nolley II sealed the win for Syracuse.

While Hughes and Boeheim are important figures and pile up the points, you can make a strong case that the Orange’s game goes as Dolezaj does.

Three points

Syracuse guard Howard Washington (10) during a game against Virginia Tech on Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020, at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va. (Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com)

1. Howard Washington Jr. provided Syracuse with quality minutes against the Hokies, especially in the first half. Washington was on the floor when Boeheim was on his incredible run, giving the Orange offense a flow and a calming presence. He ended up playing 16 minutes finishing with two points, a rebound and an assist.

2. Speaking of quality bench play, Guerrier finished with five points and nine rebounds in 24 minutes. Guerrier was a needed boost for the Orange in the first half as Bourama Sidibe got the wrath of Boeheim during an early timeout for a missed assignment on defense and hit the bench.

Guerrier needs to keep his foul rate down as he picked up three quickly against the Hokies. That said, he also hit the boards hard and had a key drive and score in the second half for the Orange. He’s making slow-but-steady progress.

3. Despite the harassing, pressure man-to-man defense employed by the Hokies, Syracuse turned the ball over just four times. Syracuse turned seven Virginia Tech turnovers into 13 points.

The Dark Side

Syracuse center Bourama Sidibe (34) cheers from the bench after forced turnover by Virginia Tech on Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020, at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va. (Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com)

Bourama Sidibe and Joe Girard III had their moments against the Hokies, but struggled for the most part.

Sidibe was read the riot act by Boeheim for the duration of an early timeout due to a lag on defense. He got into foul trouble early in the second half and finished with four fouls, adding points and five rebounds in 16 minutes.

Girard struggled to adjust to the Hokies’ pressure man-to-man defense and recorded just six points in 24 minutes with one assist. He could only manage one three-point attempt and missed. Washington Jr. provided relief for Girard in some big spots and arguably should have had the point role longer in this game.

Big Lead Blues

No lead is safe against the Hokies.

Syracuse held a 16-point lead at one point against Virginia Tech on Saturday before another nail-biter ensued.

Trailing 66-58 with 4:11 on the clock, Virginia Tech put together a 7-0 run with 3-pointers from Nahiem Alleyne and Landers Nolley II to cut the Syracuse lead to one with less than two minutes to play.

The Orange lead was 70-69 with 40 seconds left in regulation following field goals from Hughes and Dolezaj, and Wabissa Bede failing to convert a 3-point play for the Hokies.

Two mistakes were costly for the Hokies down the stretch.

Bede cut the Syracuse lead to 70-69 on a layup with :40 remaining. He was fouled on the play but missed a free throw that would have tied the game.

The Hokies later got the ball back off a Hughes shot clock violation with 10 seconds remaining. After a timeout with 7.4 seconds on the clock, Virginia Tech was baffled by an unusual defensive substitution by Boeheim and failed to score on its possession on a rushed 3-point attempt by Nolley.

Never apologize for a win, especially on the road, but part of the learning curve for this Orange squad is to learn how to hold big leads.

This, That and the Other Thing

The Syracuse basketball team get psyched up before the game against Virginia Tech on Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020, at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va. (Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com)

• Syracuse leads the all-time series with Virginia Tech 10-5. The Orange have a 3-2 record at Cassell Coliseum.
• Hughes reached the 1,000-point mark for his college career on Saturday. Hughes’ 17 points gives him 1,003 for his career, which includes 194 points from his freshman year at East Carolina.
• Virginia Tech entered the day at No. 34 in the NCAA’s NET rankings. The win gives Syracuse its second Quad 1 victory of the season (Virginia, Virginia Tech).
• Below is Syracuse’s win and loss record by quadrants so far this season with a hat tip to James Szuba.
• Q1: 2-3
• Q2: 1-3
• Q3: 1-1
• Q4: 7-0

Tweet of the Game

Contact Brent Axe: Email | Twitter

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2020-01-19 11:00:00Z
https://www.syracuse.com/orangebasketball/2020/01/hold-up-hokies-syracuse-basketball-defeats-virginia-tech-71-69-brent-axe-recap.html
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