Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
No. 8 Louisville shrugs off Syracuse
No. 8 Louisville scored 10 consecutive points in overtime, including five straight by Anas Mahmoud, to outlast Syracuse 76-72 on Monday night.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. >> No. 8 Louisville scored 10 consecutive points in overtime, including five straight by Anas Mahmoud, to outlast Syracuse 76-72 on Monday night.
John Gillon sent the game to overtime for Syracuse on a 3-pointer with 40 seconds to go in regulation that tied the score at 58. The Orange took a 63-61 lead on two free throws by Andrew White, but Louisville scored the next 10 points to take control and hold on.
Tyler Roberson went to the line for two shots that would have tied the game at 74 with 2.7 seconds to go in overtime but he missed both.
Donovan Mitchell scored 16 points, including 13 in the second half, and Quentin Snider added 14 to lead Louisville (21-5, 9-4 Atlantic Coast Conference). Mahmoud had 12.
The Cardinals, who lead the ACC in 3-point field goal defense, held the Orange (16-11, 8-6) to 8-of-34 shooting from beyond the arc. ACC leading scorer Andrew White, who leads the conference in 3-point field goals, was held to 2 of 14 from long range.
White led the Orange with 22 points, and Tyler Lydon added 14. Gillon and Taurean Thompson chipped in with 11 apiece.
Syracuse took its first lead of the game on a layup by Thompson that made it 3736 with 13:44 to go. Thompson scored all his points in the final 20 minutes.
Louisville regained took the lead seconds later on an alley-oop, tomahawk slam by Mitchell. Syracuse took a 45-43 lead on a corner 3 by Lydon, but Mitchell answered with a 3 of his own to give the Cardinals a 46-45 lead with 7:51 to go. A three-point play by Frank Howard gave Syracuse a 4846 lead, but a three-point play and layup by Mitchell extended Louisville’s lead to 51-48.
A putback by Jaylen Johnson gave Louisville a 58-55 edge with 46 seconds to go, but Gillon tied the game at 58 just six seconds later.
The Cardinals, who shot 11 of 23 in the first half, went just 11 of 32 in the second.
Quentin Snider, playing in his second game since returning from a hip injury, sparked the Cardinals in the first half. He went 4 of 7 from the field, including 3 of 5 from beyond the arc, for 11 points. Louisville hit four 3-pointers en route to a 2925 halftime lead.
The Orange started ice cold, missing their first six shots before White hit a 3-pointer at the 15:28 mark. They came back to hit 10 of 25 field goals in the half against a stifling Louisville defense that allowed Syracuse few good looks, but just 3 of 13 from 3-point range. White was just 2 of 7.
Syracuse went more than four minutes without a point as the Cardinals built their biggest lead of the half on a bucket by Mahmoud that made it 28-14. Syracuse then went on an 11-1 run at the end of the half to narrow the gap to 29-25. Lydon led the charge with six points during the spurt.
Syracuse salute
Before the game, Syracuse observed a moment of silence for Fab Melo, who played for the Orange from 2010-12. Melo died Saturday in his native Brazil of an apparent heart attack. He was 26.
Big picture
Louisville: The Cardinals, who dropped to eighth in the Top 25 this week, have a chance to climb a few slots after pulling out a road victory against an improved team.
Syracuse: There’s no room for moral victories for the Orange, who are clearly on the bubble for an NCAA tournament bid. A win over Louisville would have been huge.