Battle's 23 Not Enough Against #22/24 FSU

Tuesday, February 5

Syracuse, N.Y.

8 PM

Syracuse University

(16-7) (7-3)

Florida State

(17-5) (5-4)

Team	1	2	F
Florida State	39	41	80
Syracuse	31	31	62

Game Notes (PDF)

2/5/2019 10:08:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Tyus Battle, Elijah Hughes and Oshae Brissett's 54 combined points could not lift Syracuse (16-7, 7-3 ACC) past #22/24 Florida State (17-5, 5-4 ACC) Tuesday night at the Carrier Dome as the Seminoles won, 80-62.

Battle had a game-high 23 points on his way to surpassing 1,500 in his career. His 1,505 points move him into 21^st all-time at Syracuse. He passed Syracuse legends Louis Orr, Pearl Washington, Dennis DuVaul and Jason Hart during the contest.

Brissett had 16 points and 12 rebounds, good for his second-straight double-double. Hughes put up 17 points for his 18^th double-digit scoring game of the season. Buddy Boeheim rounded out the scoring for Syracuse with six points.

HOW THE GAME WAS DECIDED
In a game largely made up of runs, Florida State used 12 unanswered points late in the second half to take a 67-52 lead. Florida State kicked off the hot stretch with a layup from Mfiondu Kabengele and a dunk by Terance Mann. Kabengele came up big with back-to-back three-pointers before Phil Cofer capped off the run with two free-throws. Syracuse pulled within 11, 71-60, on a three by Hughes, but was unable to close the gap any further.

COACH BOEHEIM'S THOUGHTS
"I thought we got off to a really slow start and I'm really proud of the way we were able to press that much. We did a really good job on the press and we ran out a little bit and got it down to one, but they hit shots. They were very good."

SEMINOLES HOT FROM THREE
Despite entering the night ranking 237 among Division I squads in 3-point field-goal percentage (.333), Florida State took advantage of its long-distance looks. The Seminoles made 5-of-their-first-6 3-pointers and finished 11-of-22 (50 percent) from behind the arc.

The first 11 minutes of the game were all Florida State as they raced to a 36-14 lead thanks in part to a 24-5 run. The successful Seminole streak was boosted by a 6-of-7 look from behind the arc, including three treys from MJ Walker. Syracuse faced its second-largest deficit of the season at 22 points before rallying late in the first half.

ORANGE FIRE BACK
Trailing by 22 points in the opening period, he Orange fired back with a 17-3 run in the final seven minutes of the half. Syracuse shot 7-of-11 with three steals while holding Florida State to 2-of-10 from the field during the same time.

Boeheim kick-started the run with a jumper, followed by two straight baskets from Battle. 'Cuse kept the tempo going as Brissett fought through contact and connected on the free throw for a three-point play. The run continued with a second basket by Boeheim and Hughes' second 3-pointer. Florida State interrupted the run with a trey, but Battle answering with his own 3-pointer. Battle ended the half with a pair of free throws that closed the deficit at the intermission to eight.

Syracuse's continued to chip away at Florida State's margin as the Orange pulled within four, 42-38, after back-to-back baskets from Brissett and Battle. The Orange were able to get as cloas as two points, 51-49, before the Seminoles regained control.

OF NOTE

Brissett surpassed 500 career rebounds with his 12 Tuesday night.
Florida State narrowed Syracuse's series advantage to 7-4 with the victory.
Battle recorded the 30th 20+ point game in his career, the most of any active player in the ACC.
The Orange forced 21 Seminole turnovers, the second most of any ACC opponent this season.
Florida State recorded 25 assists on 30 field goals.
The Seminoles held a 33-28 advantage on the boards.
The win marked Florida State's second all-time victory in the Dome, and its first since Mar. 12, 1997 when the Seminoles defeated Syracuse 82-67, in an NIT contest.

UP NEXT
The Orange remain home to face Boston College for the second time this season on Saturday, Feb. 9 at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast on Raycom.

Tickets are available at cuse.com/tickets, by phone at 1-888-DOME-TIX or at the Carrier Dome at Gate B.