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BLACKSBURG, Va. — Syracuse entered Saturday with a chance to put together its first winning streak in nearly two months. The Orange avoided a disastrous result against NC State, defeating it 74-60. The win created separation between SU and the Wolfpack at the bottom of the Atlantic Coast Conference standings, meaning it likely won’t miss the conference tournament.

Following its victory Wednesday, the Orange had a chance to seal its spot in the ACC Tournament on the road against Virginia Tech. SU looked like it was in control for much of the game, leading by as many as 13 points in the second half. But undisciplined play led to a tight finish between it and Virginia Tech.

Ultimately, Syracuse collapsed down the stretch. It got sloppy with the ball and couldn’t stop Virginia Tech on the other end, leading to another disastrous loss.

Here are some observations from Syracuse’s (12-17, 6-12 ACC) 101-95 loss to Virginia Tech (13-16, 8-10 ACC) on Saturday.

Late game collapse

Syracuse controlled the pace of the entire game. It led by 13 with 11 minutes left, but then it completely collapsed. Virginia Tech’s defense stifled the Orange and prevented them from getting in the paint.

The Hokies pressured the ball much higher up the floor, preventing Eddie Lampkin Jr. from getting any touches anywhere near the basket, and SU’s offense looked out of sorts as a result. With seven minutes left in regulation, Jaydon Young hit a triple and Ben Hammond connected on a mid range jumper to cut SU’s lead to four.

J.J. Starling got bailed out after getting fouled on a 3-pointer, but proceeded to miss three straight free throws. Tyler Johnson scored on the other end to make it a two point game. Starling then got stripped, and the Hokies scored in transition to tie the game at 70 with less than five minutes remaining. Jyáre Davis made two free throws after getting fouled. But he turned it over soon after, leading to another run out, where Hammond scored.

After a disastrous stretch, Starling settled in. He knocked down a couple free throws after getting fouled on a drive and scoring an and-one a minute later. But four straight points from VT gave the Hokies their first lead of the game. Mylyjael Poteat scored on a turnaround hookshot to increase its lead to three.

All hope looked lost with four seconds left and Syracuse needing a three. Then, Jaquan Carlos came up the floor and drilled a three to send the game to overtime.

The madness continued in overtime. Syracuse and Virginia Tech continued to exchange body blows, but Virginia Tech landed a couple more than the Orange, helping them pull off an improbable win.

Lampkin drives continued paint dominance.

Over the past three weeks, Lampkin has been a force in the paint for Syracuse. In its last five games, the center has averaged 16.6 points and 12.6 rebounds per game. Against NC State, SU bullied the Wolfpack, scoring 46 points in the paint. Saturday, Syracuse had another advantage down low, with VT’s leading scorer Tobi Lawal ruled out pregame. This left Ben Burnham (6-foot-7) and Poteat (6-foot-9) as VT’s front court.

Poteat was Lampkin’s primary defender from the jump, but he couldn’t deal with his size. Lampkin established deep position with ease each time he came down the floor, drawing two early fouls on Poteat, forcing Patrick Wessler to replace him. Lampkin scored six of Syracuse’s first 10 points, two of which came on easy bank shots from two feet and the other from the free throw line.

The Orange clearly had an emphasis on getting Lampkin the ball early and often against an undermanned VT front court. To counter Lampkin’s dominance, Virginia Tech started doubling him from the weak side when he caught the ball on the block. It wasn’t very effective, with Lampkin scoring a game-high 14 points in the first half, along with seven rebounds in just 13 minutes.

Virginia Tech eventually slowed Lampkin down in the second half. Poteat pushed Lampkin out on the perimeter, and the Orange couldn’t find Lampkin or Davis as frequently.

Life without Lawal

Lawal is Virginia Tech’s only player who averages double figures, with 12.5 points per game. VT’s next leading scorer is Poteat (9.6 points per game), so without him, the Hokies needed to find some answers offensively. They struggled early on. Syracuse applied heavy ball pressure to VT, forcing it to start its offense far out on the perimeter.

Hammond hit a couple jumpers off the pick-and-roll, but Syracuse led 22-11 with 11:34 remaining in the first half. The Hokies didn’t get in a rhythm until they started firing away from beyond the arc. VT then sped its offense up, using dribble penetration to get into the lane before kicking out to open shooters on the wing.

It culminated in a stretch where Virginia Tech hit three 3-pointers in a two minute stretch. Johnson knocked one down before Jaden Schutt hit two straight. The second one cut Syracuse’s lead down to one with 6:13 left in the first frame.

Schutt picked up the slack for Virginia Tech, scoring 20 points. He was a constant threat on the perimeter, but he also punished the Orange with his soft touch in the paint.

Carlos’s dimes

Carlos has had a rough go of it this year for Syracuse. The adjustment from Hofstra to high major basketball has led to a fair share of struggles, causing him to be in and out of the starting lineup. Saturday, with Elijah Moore still out injured, Carlos earned his third straight start and played one of his best games of the season. The point guard’s playmaking shined through as he dished out nine assists.

Last season, Carlos averaged 6.3 assists per game. This year, that number is down to under four. Though against Virginia Tech, he was decisive and it made all the difference. Carlos dished out five assists in the first half. It was the third time in four games that he’s reached that mark.

Carlos was blitzed a couple times after receiving a screen from Naheem McLeod at the 3-point arch. Both occasions, he quickly picked his head up, wrapping a pass to McLeod for two easy dunks. With under a minute remaining, Carlos drove past his initial defender on the perimeter, drawing help defense and kicking out to Kyle Cuffe Jr. for a corner three.

Carlos was only on the bench for one minute through the first 20 minutes of the game, a stretch where Syracuse scored a season-high 47 first-half points in the ACC.

In the second half, Carlos’ distribution continued. Off his own missed 3-pointer, Carlos picked up the loose ball and found Cuffe in the corner for a triple. Then after forcing a steal, he dished off to Cuffe again in transition to complete a quick 7-0 run for Syracuse.

Cuffe hot, Starling not

Throughout this season, Starling has struggled to get going early on in games, but taken them over in the second half. Starling never really got into any offensive rhythm for most of the game, but Cuffe made up for his lack of scoring. The reserve point guard hasn’t scored in double figures since Jan. 18 against Notre Dame, but finished with 13 points.

Cuffe didn’t play much on the ball, often planting himself in the corner and waiting for opportunities to come to him. With Syracuse having success getting dribble penetration, Cuffe got his chances. All three of his 3-pointers came in similar fashion. Either Starling or Carlos beat their initial defender. When the help defense came, it left Cuffe wide open in the corner and he made them pay.

Starling had a quick two minute spell where he got to the rim effectively, but he was largely held quiet outside of that. Although the point guard finished with 16 points, he shot just 5-of-14 from the field.

Published on March 1, 2025 at 3:01 pm

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