Late Surge Lifts Orange past Bonnies, 79-66

Tuesday, November 17

Syracuse, N.Y.

7:00 p.m.

Syracuse University

(2-0)

St. Bonaventure

(1-1)

St. Bonaventure

Syracuse

Photo by: Michael J. Okoniewski

11/17/2015 9:11:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Syracuse men's basketball team defeated St. Bonaventure, 79-66, thanks to an impressive second half effort by the Orange on Tuesday night at the Carrier Dome. With the win, the Orange improved to 2-0 on the season, while the Bonnies slipped to 1-1.

A late burst by the Orange in the concluding minutes of the second half proved to be the key factor in the win, as Syracuse outscored St. Bonaventure 32-14 in the final 10 minutes of the game. The surge was led by seniors Trevor Cooney and Michael Gbinije, who each tallied 13 points in the second half.

Gbinije paced the Orange offense in the win, finishing with a game-high 23 points and team-high six assists, while Cooney ended up with 18 points and led both squads with six steals on the night.

Junior Tyler Roberson grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds, including five offensive boards.

For the second game in a row, freshman Malachi Richardson started off the contest with a 3-point basket before the two teams began to trade points. The Bonnies proceeded to take off on an 8-0 run to establish an 11-5 lead six minutes into the matchup. St. Bonaventure continued its shooting streak, primarily off of second-chance points, going on another run to extend its lead to 19-8 at the 11:51 mark, forcing a Syracuse timeout.

With the Bonnies holding its largest lead of the game at the 3:28 mark, 32-21, the Orange stepped up offensively, scoring eight points in the final three minutes of the half to cut the St. Bonaventure lead down to six, 35-29, heading into halftime.

Both squads proceeded to exchange points the opening minutes of the second half, but three's by Cooney and Gbinije triggered an offensive outburst seven minutes in, narrowing the Bonnies lead to 48-45 and forcing a St. Bonaventure timeout.

Another 3-pointer by Gbinije and a subsequent layup brought Syracuse within a shot of the lead, 52-51, with 10 and a half minutes left in the game. The Orange continued to test the Bonnies, as a 3-pointer by freshman Tyler Lydon knotted it up at 54 at the 9:03 mark.

The Orange took its first lead of the game since the opening basket with 8:34 left off of an old-fashioned three-point play by Cooney, 57-54. Major 3-pointers by Richardson and Lydon at the 6:07 and 3:42 marks brought Syracuse its largest lead of the game at the time, 69-59, and forced a St. Bonaventure timeout.

A dunk by DaJuan Coleman with 13 seconds left to play proved to be the final nail in the coffin, as the Orange came out on top, 79-66.

Syracuse is back in action this Saturday, kicking off the Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament against Elon at 7 p.m. in the Carrier Dome. Tickets are available at the Carrier Dome Box Office or by calling 1-888-DOMETIX.