Syracuse Rallies Past SMU Behind Fresh Faces and a Flurry of Threes
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - For much of Saturday afternoon, Syracuse looked stuck in neutral. SMU’s 1-3-1 zone was giving the Orange fits, and every trip down the floor felt like a grind.
The Mustangs’ length, anchored by 7-foot-2 center Samet Yitigoglu, clogged the paint. Meanwhile, Syracuse couldn’t buy a bucket from deep, opening the game just 5-for-17 from three-point range.
But with just over 12 minutes left and his team trailing by double digits, head coach Adrian Autry rolled the dice.
He turned to two reserves-freshman Tyler Betsey and sophomore Kiyan Anthony-and let them ride out the rest of the game. The result? A 79-78 comeback win that might just be Syracuse’s most dramatic of the season.
It wasn’t just the final score that stood out. It was how the Orange got there.
A New Look That Changed Everything
Donnie Freeman led the team with 18 points, Naithan George added 16, and Nate Kingz-who hit the game-winner with 2.3 seconds left-chipped in 13. But the real story was the spark provided by Betsey and Anthony, whose presence on the floor completely shifted the way Syracuse attacked the zone.
“We were stagnant,” Autry said postgame. “We needed some guys out there that could make shots.”
Anthony checked in with 16:46 remaining and Syracuse down by 10. Betsey followed five minutes later with the Orange still down nine. From there, neither left the floor.
The move wasn’t scripted, but it worked. Kingz admitted the lineup wasn’t part of the original game plan, but once they saw SMU sticking with the zone, it became clear they needed more shooting on the floor.
“TB, Kiyan, George-all those guys were definitely hitting,” Kingz said. “That forced them to get out of the zone late in the game. That freed us up a lot more.”
Syracuse attempted a season-high 30 threes and tied its season-best with 11 makes-an unexpected stat line for a team that entered the day ranked 15th in the ACC in three-point percentage and 17th in threes made per game.
With George, Kingz, Anthony, Betsey, and Freeman on the floor for the final 11:45, the Orange hit 6-of-13 from beyond the arc.
Anthony and Betsey Deliver in the Clutch
Anthony, who had watched the previous game from the bench, scored all 13 of his points in the second half. He and Betsey brought energy, spacing, and shot-making-exactly what the Orange needed to claw back.
“I feel like me and Tyler bring something different to the team,” Anthony said. “We were on a roll today, me and TB early, and Coach believing in us to pull out the game.”
Betsey’s fingerprints were all over the final minutes. With Syracuse trailing 76-72 and the clock ticking under four minutes, Freeman found Betsey with a cross-court skip pass. Betsey buried the corner three, shifting momentum back to the Orange.
“That changed the tide of the whole game,” Freeman said. “That was big for us, for sure.”
SMU coach Andy Enfield acknowledged the difficulty of defending Syracuse down the stretch.
“They made some tough shots,” Enfield said. “Three contested threes with a hand in the face. They did a nice job making shots when the game was on the line.”
Defense Seals It, Offense Finishes It
Even with the offensive surge, Syracuse still trailed 78-77 in the final minute. The Orange had come up empty on four straight possessions, and SMU had the ball with a chance to put the game away.
That’s when Betsey, a 6-foot-8 forward, found himself switched onto SMU’s Boopie Miller-a shifty 6-foot guard and one of the ACC’s top scorers.
Betsey held his ground. Miller’s baseline floater missed badly.
“He did a really good job,” Autry said. “Tyler’s one of our better defenders. Him, Sadiq White, Will Kyle-those guys can all switch onto guards.”
With the stop secured, Syracuse called timeout with 13.7 seconds left. SMU had ditched its zone late in the second half, opening the door for Autry to draw up a one-on-one opportunity for Kingz.
And the lefty delivered.
Kingz drove hard from the left wing, powered through contact, and banked in the go-ahead bucket with just over two seconds remaining. It capped a furious rally and gave Syracuse its most notable win since edging nationally-ranked Tennessee back in early December.
A Statement Win, and a Glimpse of the Future
This one felt different. Not just because of the comeback, but because of who made it happen.
You had a pair of underclassmen-one who hadn't played a minute in the previous game-stepping into the spotlight and swinging the momentum of an entire contest. You had a team that had struggled from deep all season suddenly catching fire when it mattered most. And you had a head coach willing to trust his bench in crunch time.
“I thought when we moved the ball better, we got really good shots at the end,” Autry said. “We did all the things we needed to do to pull out a victory.”
For Syracuse, this wasn’t just a win. It was a blueprint.