No. 2 Syracuse rallied from a six-point second half deficit to defeat upset-minded Miami, 49-44. The Orange kept it interesting by shooting just 36 percent from the field in the game, the worst mark for Syracuse since its effort against St. Francis of New York on Nov. 18.
Syracuse vs. Miami final score: Orange rally to stay perfect, 49-44
It was a messy affair in the Carrier Dome, but Syracuse got just enough from C.J. Fair to stave off the upset and improve to 14-0.
Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports
Leading scorer C.J. Fair had a team-high 15 points for Syracuse on Saturday, but needed 14 shots to do so. Trevor Cooney scored 11, but was 2-12 from three-point range. The sophomore guard didn't take a single shot from inside the arc in the contest.
Miami’s defense was its strong suit. The Hurricanes blocked six Syracuse shots, including four from forward Donnavan Kirk. Garrius Adams was the leading scorer for Miami with nine points, as no Hurricane player managed double-digit scoring.
In its first conference game as a member of the ACC, Syracuse was thought to have an easy home game against a rebuilding Miami team. The Hurricanes proved that there aren’t going to be many gimmes in the new-look conference. Going forward, the Orange will play their first conference road game on Tuesday against Virginia Tech before returning home next Saturday to host No. 19 North Carolina.
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