Another ugly loss for Syracuse
Trae Golden made six clutch free throws as part of a 16-point performance Tuesday as visiting Georgia Tech held on for a 67-62 upset of No. 7 Syracuse, whose late-season free fall shows no signs of ending.
The Yellow Jackets (1416, 5-12 ACC) snapped a four-game losing streak thanks in large part to Golden and Daniel Miller, who had 15 points and six blocks.
Syracuse (26-4, 13-4) has lost four of five since opening the season with 25 wins — a slump that includes home losses to two of the ACC’s worst teams in Boston College and Georgia Tech. C.J. Fair scored 28 points on senior night, while Tyler Ennis had 18 points and seven assists.
The Orange erased most of a 13-point second-half deficit, closing to 61-59 on Michael Gbinije’s follow with 34 seconds left, but Golden hit four free throws in the next nine seconds. Falling: Markel Starks scored 12 of his 17 points in the second half, six down the stretch, as host Georgetown (17-12, 8-9 Big East) won 75-63 against No. 13 Creighton (23-6, 13-4). ... Cory Jefferson had 21 points and host Baylor (2010, 8-9 Big 12) scored the last 13 points in a 74-61 victory over No. 16 Iowa State (22-7, 10-7), the Bears’ sixth win in their last seven games. Rolling: Michael Frazier II scored a career-high 37 points and set a school record with 11 3-pointers as top-ranked Florida (28-2) defeated visiting South Carolina 72-46 for its 22nd consecutive victory. The Gators can become the first team to go 18-0 in SEC play with a victory Saturday over Kentucky. ... Nik Stauskas scored 24 points, including seven 3-pointers, as No. 12 Michigan ( 22-7, 14- 3) clinched its first outright Big Ten title since 1986 with a convincing 84-53 road win over Illinois (17-13, 6-11). Layups: Duke, Stanford, Temple and UNLV will compete in the championship round of next season’s Coaches vs. Cancer Classic on Nov. 21-22 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. ... Purdue announced redshirt freshman forward Jay Simpson’s career is over because of the heart condition hypertrophic cardiomyotrophy.