Syracuse rocks No. 13 Tennessee in stellar upset win at home

Syracuse pulled off a historic 62-60 upset win over No. 13 Tennessee in the JMA Wireless Dome on Wednesday night. This is the program’s first victory over the Vols since 1993. For a win that was 32 years in the making, the Orange made it worth the watch for fans both at home and inside the loud house.

Syracuse went into another matchup without star forward Donnie Freeman, who has been on a multi-week hiatus from play due to a lower leg injury. Head coach Adrian Autry reassured   fans he will be better soon (will return soon?). The game started unsteadily on both sides of the court. Multiple missed shots and turnovers kept fans on their feet for nearly two minutes. Junior guard Naithan George opened scoring for the game but that momentum was halted by a Sadiq White Jr. personal foul that sent the Volunteers to the free-throw line.

The back-and-forth   the game turned into was at the hands of redshirt senior Nate Kingz, who scored 19 points in the first half and carried the team’s momentum. Tennessee took its first lead of the game in the ninth minute of the first half, but Kingz didn’t let them have it for long. 

Kingz guard answered Jaylen Carey’s layup for the leadwith one of his own.This trend continued through the rest of the time Kingz was on the floor, and the score bounced back and forth between the two Orange squads.

At the end of the first half, SU led 32-30  thanks to a buzzer-beater from forward Tyler Betsey.

The Cuse entered the second half of the game composed yet aggressive, continuously answering buckets from Tennessee’s Ja’kobi Gillespie and Nate Ament. An offensive foul on Bishop Bosewell gave the Orange the momentum to slow down the Volunteers and attack on offense. 

A rowdy Orange crowd fired up the team, who now had a six-point lead from big SU plays, including three consecutive dunks from senior guard JJ Starling , White Jr. and William Kyle III. Tennessee regained its momentum and disrupted  Syracuse’s scoring run. Turnovers riddled the Orange with challenges while the Volunteers capitalized on these scoring opportunities.

Tennessee standout  Carey scored twice in a row off of SU turnovers, followed by his teammate Ament, who made both free throws. Carey came around again for a layup, closing the gap to only one point,  50-49 SU.

The Volunteers took the lead after a Gillespie layup, but it wasn’t long before  Starling reignited his squad’s flame with a much-needed three-pointer in the final three minutes of play.

It was a tie game with just over 45 seconds left in the second half  when a personal foul on Bosewell allowed  Kyle III to seal the deal for the Orange with a single shot from the free throw line. .

Another Tennessee personal foul sent White Jr. to the free throw line to add another point on the final score, ending the game with a 62-60 win. 

Kyle III said his mindset at the free-throw line is what ultimately won the game for the Orange.

“I just stuck with my routine when I got to the line,” Kyle III said “Obviously, my first one didn’t drop and the second was able to drop at the end. ”. It was a routine that I trusted that paid off in the end.”

 Starling earned praise from Coach Red  for his his dynamic performance on both ends of the floor. The senior  did not have a box-breaking numbers in the first, but Autry said  his presence and scoring was pivotal for the Orange in the second half. .

“I thought he brought tremendous leadership,” Autry said. “He made plays and then he made big shots when we needed it… that’s what he can do.”

The 5-3 Orange will head back to the Dome for their next late-night contest against St. Joseph’s on Dec. 11. Tipoff is slated for 9 p.m.