Orange Top UNC Greensboro, 90-77

Wednesday, March 15

Syracuse, NY

7 p.m.

Syracuse University

(19-14)

UNC Greensboro

(25-10)

UNCG

Photo by: Michael J. Okoniewski

3/15/2017 9:32:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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Andrew White III becomes SU season leader in 3-point field goals made

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Syracuse (19-14) improved to 4-0 all-time versus UNC Greensboro with a 90-77 victory over the Spartans (25-10) in the opening round of the 2017 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) Wednesday, March 15 at the Carrier Dome.

The Orange advance to the tournament's second round and will host fifth-seeded Ole Miss (21-13) on Saturday, March 18 at 11 a.m. Tickets start at $15 for adults and $5 for Syracuse University or ESF students with a valid ID, and youth ages 12 and under. Tickets go on sale tonight beginning at 10 p.m. and can be purchased online at Cuse.com/tickets and Ticketmaster.com.

Graduate student Andrew White III led four Orange in double figures against the Spartans. He scored 34 points on 11-of-15 shooting, including a Syracuse NIT-record seven 3-pointers. His seven trifectas raised his season total to 109, eclipsing Gerry McNamara's school record of 107 set in 2004-05.

It was White III's second straight 30-point game at the Dome. He tallied a career-high 40 points in SU's 90-61 home victory against Georgia Tech on March 4.

Freshman Tyus Battle tallied 20 points versus UNCG, while classmate Taurean Thompson chipped in 12. Sophomore Tyler Lydon added 13 points and a game-high 10 rebounds to post his eighth double-double of the year.

Battle and Thompson got Syracuse going early, combining for the Orange's first seven points to stake the home team to a five-point advantage, 7-2, at the first media timeout. The Spartans whittled the SU lead to one, 10-9, on a 3-pointer by Francis Alonso with 14:22 remaining before an 8-2 Orange run, capped by two White III 3-pointers, put SU back in front, 18-11, at the 12:36 mark.

The Spartans absorbed the Orange surge and rallied for 24-23 lead on a 3-point basket by Demetrius Troy with 9:12 left in the opening stanza. However, Syracuse tallied 12 straight points to pull ahead 35-24 and held a 47-37 advantage at the break.

In the second half, the Orange opened up its largest lead of the game, 69-47, on a pair of free throws by Battle with 11:57 to go. The Spartans used an 11-0 run late in the game to trim the margin to 81-74 with 2:05 left, but the Orange sank nine of its 10 free throws down the stretch to put the finishing touches on the victory.

Syracuse shot 55.8 percent (29-52) from the field, including 18-for-28 (.643) from the floor and 6-of-10 (.600) from 3-point range in the first half. The Spartans were 33-for-71 (.465). In addition, the Orange connected on 82.1 percent (23-28) of their foul shots and outscored UNCG from the charity stripe, 23-4.

Diante Baldwin led the Spartans with 19 points and eight rebounds. RJ White tallied 16 points and Troy finished with 14, including four 3-pointers. Syracuse held Alonso, UNCG's leading scorer, to just three points, his lowest scoring total of the year and 12 points below his season average.

Saturday's second-round matchup with Ole Miss will mark the first meeting between the Orange and Rebels. The winner advances to the NIT quarterfinals against either Georgia Tech or Belmont.