Eagles Hang Tough But Falter Late Against Syracuse
After 10 days off since their upset win over Virginia Tech, BC had one final chance to make a statement to the ACC that they will be a contender moving forward with a New Year’s Eve afternoon road test against Syracuse in The Dome on Saturday.
BC got out to an early six-point lead in the first half, but ended up trailing by nine at the break. Another run in the second half put BC up briefly, but Syracuse’s defense and ability to score seemingly at will was just too much as the Orange won comfortably 79-65.The loss puts BC at 7-7 and 1-2 in the ACC heading into 2023 and was also the ninth straight win for Syracuse over the Eagles. BC doesn’t have much time to dwell on the loss though, as they’ll host rival Notre Dame at Cine Forum on Tuesday night.
“I felt good, I thought the guys felt good, I didn’t think it was a major issue,” head coach Earl Grant said when asked if the 10-day layoff had any affect on his team. “I thought our guys felt good, I thought we practiced well. For the most part, we played a good game. They made some big shots in the second half, we made some bad decisions with the ball, we turned it over and they capitalized.
“I didn’t think having the time off was a major issue.”
Trailing 36-27 at halftime, BC watched as the lead grew to 40-30 early in the second half, but continued to fight. The Eagles got a Prince Aligbe (12 points, 5 rebounds) layup with about 16 minutes left to cut it to 40-35. Syracuse was able to maintain a bit of cushion and took a 46-36 lead with just over 15 minutes to go. BC eventually cut it to 46-43 on a Makai Ashton-Langford (14 points, 3 assists, 4 rebounds, 4 steals) layup and then two Devin McGlockton (8 points, 4 rebounds) free throws made it a one point game with 12:57 left. Seconds later, a three pointer by McGlockton gave the Eagles a 48-46 lead.
Things went back and forth until a Jaeden Zackery and-one with the free throw put BC up 51-49 with 11:03 on the clock. Unfortunately, it was the last time the Eagles would have the lead. Quinten Post - making his season debut after missing the first 13 games - hit two free throws with a little over nine minutes to play to cut the deficit to 56-53, but Cuse got a huge three on the ensuing possession to push the lead back to six. The Eagles remained within four at 59-55 with a little over seven minutes remaining, but the Orange pulled away down the stretch while BC turned the ball over and just couldn’t get enough stops.
“We took the lead with nine, 10 minutes to go. All it was was we were taking care of the ball and we weren’t giving them anything in transition…we didn’t maintain that the last seven minutes. Then again, tip your hat to them. The ball went in, they made shots, a few of them were tough ones, so we’ve got to just give them credit.
“We just didn’t defend well. 79 points is a lot to give up on the road.”