The Syracuse Orange men’s basketball team heads home from March Madness after one game for the first time since 2006. Baylor hit 16-of-34 attempts from three, a game-long trend that doomed Syracuse’s defense and forced a combined 6-for-21 game from Tyus Battle and Buddy Boeheim in the absence of Frank Howard. Baylor won 78-69.
In the guise of Virginia, the Bears unloaded three after three and splashed them all. Mario Kegler twice. Makai Mason. Jared Butler. Baylor hit four straight threes to lead 12-4 in under four minutes over the Syracuse zone.
Their 10-for-18 three-point shooting in the first half could’ve spelled the Orange’s demise, but on the other side Oshae Brissett, Elijah Hughes and the freshly-returned Tyus Battle built a three-man offense that met their firepower.