Late surge lifts Syracuse past Florida State men's basketball, 76-67
A new starting lineup and a huge first-half performance from center Naheem McLeod put the Florida State men’s basketball team in prime position to knock off visiting Syracuse on Wednesday night.
Then the second half of the second half happened.
Syracuse went on a 16-2 run that lasted well over five minutes of game time, and the Orange pulled away for a 76-67 victory.
Florida State falls to 8-17, 6-8 in the ACC, while the Orange improve to 15-10, 8-6.
“Down the stretch, you’ve got to give them credit,” Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton said. “They had more poise than we did. They got the ball inside. They drove and consistently finished in transition, and drew fouls.”
The Orange did that repeatedly in the second half, which helped them shoot 53.1 percent (17 of 32) from the floor in that period after connecting on just 11 of 30 attempts in the first.
Syracuse also dominated the Seminoles on the boards in the second half, securing a 25-12 advantage in rebounding after FSU held a 22-14 advantage at halftime.
Perhaps looking for a spark offensively, Florida State gave freshman Chandler Jackson his first career start at point guard in place of sophomore Jalen Warley, and he had a solid performance with seven points and nine assists with just two turnovers.
But it was McLeod who really got the Seminoles going in the first half. The 7-foot-4 center scored 14 points, grabbed 6 rebounds and blocked 2 shots in the first half as the Seminoles opened a 35-29 lead at the break.
Syracuse came out much sharper in the second half, however, and opened a nine-point lead with just over seven minutes remaining.
Top 10
- 1Live
Kirk Herbstreit interview
ESPN analyst joins Andy & Ari On3
- 2
Steve Spurrier
Advising change for CFP selection
- 3Hot
Cotton Bowl weather threat
Statement on pending snow
- 4
Paul Finebaum
In loss, Georgia became new Alabama
- 5
Texas AD blasts rumors
Sarkisian, NFL links draw response
Get the On3 Top 10 to your inbox every morning
By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.
Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said his defense did a better job of sagging down near the basket to take away the lob passes to McLeod, and Florida State’s guards were unable to pick up the slack. Facing the Orange 2-3 zone defense, FSU settled for a slew of 3-pointers with little accuracy.
Florida State connected on just 9 of 35 shots from long range; the Seminoles were 17-of-32 on two-point tries.
Syracuse was led by senior guard Joseph Girard III with 26 points; he was one of four Orange players in double-figures scoring.
McLeod finished with a career-high 16 points, and the Seminoles got 19 from sophomore guard Matthew Cleveland and 17 from junior guard Darin Green Jr.
Florida State returns to action Saturday at home against Pittsburgh. Tipoff is scheduled for noon.
***Talk about this story with other die-hard FSU Basketball fans on our Seminole Hoops Message Board.***
