SU picks up crucial win in double overtime contest against Cal

Lately, there hasn’t been a whole lot for Syracuse Men’s Basketball fans to get excited about. After last Saturday’s defeat to Virginia, SU had lost 6 of its last 7 games, making hopes of a national tournament run slimmer than ever. 

But Wednesday night, the ‘Cuse gave Orange Nation a game for the ages. 

In desperate need of a win, Syracuse defeated California 107-100 in double overtime. The thriller featured 11 scorers in double figures, a buzzer-beating basket, 28 lead changes, and most notably, a stadium-wide power outage. 

The Orange and the Golden Bears came into Wednesday night’s contest ranked 70th and 71st, respectively, by Ken Pom. As it would turn out, the contest was just as even on the court as it was on paper. 

Both squads went back and forth at each other all night. JJ Starling and Nate Kingz each drained a three-pointer within the first 3 minutes to get the Orange offense going early. Then John Camden and the Golden Bears responded with a few buckets of their own. 

About seven and a half minutes into the game, Kiyan Anthony checked into the contest for Syracuse. The freshman made national headlines after he was left on the bench for the entire game against Virginia. Despite his return to action, the son of Syracuse legend Carmelo Anthony was a non-factor Wednesday night, recording just 2 points in 14 minutes played. 

Meanwhile, former Syracuse forward Chris Bell got his return to the Dome started with a triple shortly after Anthony checked in. The senior spent three seasons in the 315 as a consistent scorer before heading to the West Coast following last year’s campaign. It’s safe to say he was not welcomed home kindly by the SU fans, who booed him at every chance they got.

The remainder of the opening half featured some sloppy basketball from Syracuse. The Orange struggled to get into an offensive rhythm, giving away costly turnovers and chucking up ill-advised three-pointers. SU hit just 3 of their 16 attempts from beyond the arc in the first half.  

The Golden Bears came into the contest as the third most efficient three point shooting team in the ACC. Throughout the first 20 minutes, they lived up to that mark, shooting 50% from deep. 

But despite California’s shooting success, the Orange found themselves knotted with the Golden Bears at 35 points apiece after the first half.

At the beginning of the second half, Sadiq White came off the bench to jumpstart Syracuse’s offense. The five-star freshman threw down three of his signature slams in a span of just over two minutes. White finished the game with 10 points in 9 minutes as one of Syracuse’s 6 scorers in double figures. 

“I thought he (Sadiq White) came in and gave us a big spark. And then on the bench, you just heard his voice encouraging everybody, and that’s what you need,” SU head coach Adrian Autry said.

A few moments later, William Kyle rocked the rim with a monster dunk of his own. The senior center began to heat up as time ticked down, working hard inside the paint and fighting for offensive boards to keep SU possessions alive. 

The game stayed close as it came down to the wire, with the lead changing constantly. Nate Kingz scored a big bucket as he was fouled with under 2 minutes to play. After he missed the ensuing free throw, Milos Ilic hit 2 shots from the charity stripe to give the Golden Bears a short-lived 1 point advantage, which ended when Nait George splashed an open corner three on the other end. It was a game of hot potato, with each team quickly passing off the lead. 

After a Dai Dai Ames bucket and a costly JJ Starling turnover, California found the ball in its possession with 22 seconds to go and the game tied at 78. Ames, the Golden Bears’ leading scorer, opted to go for the final shot himself. But his fadeaway jumper as time expired was just a bit too heavy, sending the game to an extra period.

In overtime, Golden Bears guard Justin Pippen fouled out with ten points, sending Donnie Freeman to the line. The SU sophomore missed both shots, but was bailed out by William Kyle, who grabbed an offensive board and scored to give the hosts the lead back.  

Then, in the midst of the action, something completely unprecedented happened. The power went out inside the Dome. Everyone froze for a moment as the lights dimmed down, the scoreboard went blank, and play came to a stop. 

For a moment, it was unclear whether the game would continue on.  

“At one point they (the officials) told us that we needed to take our guys back,” Coach Autry said. “They were saying keep your guys warm, it’s gonna be a while.”

But fairly quickly, it was decided that the game would continue — the dimly lit Dome would have to do. 

It looked initially as though there might only be a few minutes of basketball in a power-less arena. Syracuse led by 2 with 20 seconds to go in overtime after big buckets from JJ Starling and Nate Kingz, SU’s two leading scorers on the night. But California wasn’t ready to go home yet. Illic grabbed an offensive board and put up a shot off the glass for 2 as time expired. It was going to take more basketball to decide a winner. 

In double overtime though, the Orange finally pulled ahead. After going quiet for the first 45 minutes, Donnie Freeman scored back to back buckets to give Syracuse a 3 point lead. Nate Kingz followed that up by converting a wide open three pointer to put SU up 6. It was the largest lead of the game for either team since just under 4 minutes left in the first half, a testament to the close-knit contest. 

The Orange never looked back. Freeman and his teammates saw the game out with free throws and steady defense. After fifty minutes of basketball, Syracuse came out victorious 107-100 over California, picking up its second win in eight games. 

“This is a resilient team. Through our losses and shortcomings, the one thing you can’t question is this team’s fight,” Coach Autry said after the game. 

One guy who modeled resilience Wednesday night was William Kyle. SU’s big man was huge on the glass. He recorded a career-high 16 rebounds, 9 of which were offensive boards. 

“Coach P really emphasized getting to the offensive glass against Cal. So that was something I took as a challenge,” Kyle said in postgame. “It was great to just trust the scouting, listen to the coaching staff, and then go out there and execute.”

There were several things that certainly didn’t go to plan for the Orange. For one, SU shot under 60% from the charity stripe, missing several key free throws down the stretch. The Golden Bears came in as the best free throw shooting team in the conference and ended the day 19-25 from the line themselves. 

Another problem for Syracuse was Donnie Freeman’s lack of production in the earlier parts of the contest. The Washington, D.C native has led the Orange in scoring ten times this season. But at the end of regulation, SU’s star had just 5 points. The Golden Bears significantly limited his opportunities.

“We wanted to give Donny different looks,” California head coach Mark Madsen said. “He’s a very talented player.”

Freeman figured things out when it mattered most though, finishing the day with 16 points, 8 of which came in double overtime alone. 

“He kept his [Freeman] mind in the game by cheering for his teammates.” Coach Autry said.  “And I think once he got back in, he really settled down, and he came up big for us in some situations,”

Freeman and the Orange have little time to rest after Wednesday’s thrilling win. SU is back at it on Saturday against SMU in another crucial conference clash in the Dome. There’s very little wiggle room for Coach Autry’s team if they still have their sights set on the national tournament. But William Kyle has confidence in his team. 

“If there’s any group that can turn it around, I believe in this group,” Kyle said. “We have plenty of season left and we’re going to fight till the end.”