The first 3-pointer Wake Forest hit had Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim almost ripping his jacket off. Then, after another, he did rip it off and threw it at his chair. Then he kicked the chair. Then, after the sixth consecutive 3-pointer Wake Forest drilled, he had no jacket to tear off so he had to get creative. He walked down the sideline, turned at his chair, bent at the waist and shook his chair as hard as he could.

Syracuse (17-8, 6-6 Atlantic Coast) survived a late upset bid by a Wake Forest (9-16, 2-11) team that suddenly couldn’t miss to escape with a 78-70 win on Sunday afternoon in the Carrier Dome. The victory avenged Syracuse’s first loss ever to Wake Forest earlier this season when the Orange fell, 73-67, on Jan. 3 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. SU lost that game because it allowed three-straight corner 3s near the end of the game. This team almost did the same, but only almost.

Here are three fast reactions from the game.

Window washers

The biggest reason Syracuse lost to Wake Forest on Jan. 3 was because the Demon Deacons out-rebounded the Orange 38-to-29, but Syracuse ensured it would not be beat on the glass on Sunday.

Paschal Chukwu was more active with his hands on both ends of the floor than he has been most of this season and backup center Bourama Sidibe came off the bench to supplement Chukwu’s production to maintain pace with the Demon Deacons in the win. Chukwu’s 11 boards and Sidibe’s three helped SU snuff out Wake Forest possessions, which proved to be key when WFU couldn’t hit shots but still made timely enough plays to hang around for most of the night.

The Orange’s ability to close out Wake Forest on the glass only heightened in importance when, midway through the second half, Wake Forest caught fire and sent Boeheim into a rage. The Demon Deacons hit six consecutive 3-pointers — Mitchell Wilbekin had three — to pull themselves back into the game. Even after the run, Wake Forest still continued hitting 3s and never allowed Syracuse to inch away. Boeheim became furious late in the half with his team’s defense and free-throw shooting woes.

The biggest rebound, to secure Syracuse’s great escape, came from Chukwu after Wake Forest’s Keyshawn Woods finally missed a 3-pointer. After so much tension, the Carrier Dome crowd finally rose to its feet.

Dropping dimes

Syracuse point guard Frank Howard had an ACC-play-high seven assists … before the first half was over.

While the Orange didn’t move off the ball any more than they have all season, Howard and Battle facilitated improved ball movement and the biggest difference was SU’s shooters capitalizing on their looks and making shots. Howard eclipsed his previous conference game-high, six, in Syracuse’s hot-shooting win over Boston College on Jan. 24, when he hit freshman forward Oshae Brissett for a corner 3. As the public-address announcer blared, “Trey for Oshae,” Howard turned back toward the defensive end of the floor and simply nodded.

The junior complemented his efficient night on offense by taking care of the ball and only turning it over once. In the second half, though, Howard’s production slowed considerably despite Wake Forest appearing to make no significant changes on its defense of him. He added only two more helpers throughout the night and finished with nine. His season-high is still the 10 he had in the Maryland win on Nov. 27.

Near the end of the game, Howard went to the line twice with a chance to help close out a pesky Demon Deacons team that refused to go away. As much as he helped others generate offense, Syracuse needed him to generate it himself. He missed both sets of free throws and drew Boeheim’s ire, but it didn’t matter as Syracuse managed to close out the game.

Bayer doubles career minutes

When freshman forward Marek Dolezaj picked up his second foul midway through the first half, Boeheim turned to his bench and jerked his thumb at guard Braedon Bayer. The junior transfer had played one minute in Syracuse’s upset win at Louisville on Monday, but on his only offensive possession, he was whistled for a travel that ultimately led to a Cardinals 3-pointer from inside the midcourt line as time expired in the first half.

Against Wake Forest, with freshman forward Matthew Moyer sidelined, Bayer entered in the “3” position and grabbed two rebounds in his four minutes, a total that equaled his total number of minutes played this season. His biggest contribution for the Orange was that he played mistake-free basketball and committed no turnovers or defensive errors. With Syracuse’s extremely short bench, he provided a moment of rest for Dolezaj when he was in foul trouble.

Published on February 11, 2018 at 3:14 pm

Contact Sam: sjfortie@syr.edu | @Sam4TR