Kris Joseph helps Syracuse Orange down Virginia Tech Hokies 69-58 – NCAA Basketball
After trailing behind by two points in the first half Syracuse Orange turned the tide in the second half to beat Virginia Tech Hokies 69-58 on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden, New York.
"I thought Virginia Tech did a great job against our defense, moving the ball and getting it to the right guy," Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said after the game. "Our problem was on offense, we just didn't get anything going. Kris
helped us in the first half and then Dion got going and I thought C.J. Fair was really good in the second half."
Syracuse Orange’s Kris Joseph was the player to watch out for. He hit game-high 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the game. Brandon Triche also scored 18 points and provided six assists for Orange.
Virginia Tech started strongly after Eddie put the first points on the board by hitting a three-pointer (3-0). The Hokies continued to dominate and were leading by seven points (15-8), before Syracuse responded and came within
two (22-20).
However, the Hokies halted their way in time, as Eddie came to rescue his team with a jumper on Robert Brown’s assist to stretch the lead to 24-20. Kris Joseph and company later tried to overcome the Hokies lead, but Dorenzo Hudson’s
two free throws kept them ahead (29-27) when the first half finished.
The battle between the two sides got more intense after the break, as the ball kept travelling from one end to the other. The Hokies didn’t allow Orange to come in front till seven minute mark. The Orange tied the scores 42-42
with Brandon Triche’s three pointer and few seconds later C.J. Fair gave them the lead (44-42) with his jump shot.
Fair’s shot ignited a rally that gave Syracuse their first double-digit lead of the game 56-45. Dion Waiters hit seven of his 11 points during the spurt. Orange maintained their grasp rest of the way.
"We still have a long way to go and we can become a better team but we're not there for sure," Syracuse coach Boeheim said. "It's going to take some time. We do have the potential but as we saw tonight we have a lot to do."
From Virginia Tech, guard/forward Jarell Eddie tallied most points. He counted 17 points, provided five dimes and clutched four boards, during his 35 minutes stay on the court. Erick Green assisted him with 14 points, five rebounds,
three steals and two assists.
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