Syracuse blows lead, falls to Virginia Tech, 67-63 - syracuse.com

Syracuse, N.Y. -- Syracuse squandered a nine-point second-half lead in a 67-63 loss to Virginia Tech at the Carrier Dome on Tuesday night.

Syracuse seemed to be in control, leading 40-31 with 12 minutes left in the game, but Virginia Tech went on a stunning 20-4 run.

The Hokies scored the 20 points in less than four minutes.

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Virginia Tech had made just five of their first 26 shots from 3-point range but made four straight during the rally, including a pair of threes that turned into 4-point plays when Syracuse fouled the shooter.

Nolley’s 3-pointer from the top of the key with 8:39 left capped the Hokies’ run, giving Virginia Tech a 51-44 advantage.

The loss dropped Syracuse’s record to a disappointing 8-7 overall and 1-3 in the ACC. The Orange is now 0-3 at home against conference foes.

Syracuse had lost its first three conference home games just one time since joining the Big East in 1980. Syracuse dropped its first three Big East home games in 1996-97, a season in which SU went to the NIT.

Virginia Tech improved to 11-4 overall and 2-2 in the ACC.

Syracuse got close in the final minutes.

Elijah Hughes, who led SU with 18 points, made a long 3-pointer from beyond the top of the key, cutting the Hokies’ lead to 62-59 with 1:20 remaining.

The Orange chased on defense, but Virginia Tech’s P.J. Horne made a jumper from the corner with 41.5 seconds left to give the Hokies a 64-59 lead.

Nolley made the necessary free throws in the final seconds to preserve the win for the Hokies.

Virginia Tech’s Jalen Cone started the Hokies’ big rally with two big plays. Cone hit a 3-pointer as he was fouled by Quincy Guerrier, which turned the shot into a four-point play with 11:53 left in the game.

Then a minute later, Cone drilled a three in transition to get the Hokies within two points for the first time since there were seven minutes left in the first half.

Nolley turned a turnover by Marek Dolezaj into a breakaway layup, tying the game at 42 with 10 minutes remaining.

Cone, a freshman, came into the game averaging just 5.6 points. He finished with a career-high 19 points. Cone scored 16 of his points in the second half.

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Syracuse led 33-27 at halftime thanks to a surprisingly strong defensive effort.

Syracuse played much better defense, especially on the perimeter, than it had in Saturday’s loss to Notre Dame. The Orange held Virginia Tech to just five made 3-pointers out of 18 attempts in the first half.

The Orange limited Nolley to just four first-half points, keeping the high-scoring freshman to 2-for-7 field goal shooting.

Joe Girard scored 10 points in the opening half, but he was shut down in the second half and finished with 12. Quincy Guerrier, the only reserve who played for the Orange, had 12 points and nine rebounds.

Syracuse went on a 12-3 run late in the first half. The Orange led 18-16 with seven minutes left in the half, but the rally increased the edge to 30-19.

Syracuse’s next game is on Saturday at Virginia. The Orange opened the season with a 48-34 home loss to the Cavaliers. Game time is at 4 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN.

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