SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Coach
Jim Boeheim earned his 900
th career victory on Monday evening, leading the #3/3 Orange (10-0) to a thrilling, 72-68 triumph, against the Titans (6-5).
With the historic win, the legendary coach joined Mike Krzyzewski and Bobby Knight as the only three members in the prestigious 900-club at the Division I level. Boeheim is the only one of the trio who won all 900 games at one school.
The milestone victory extended the Orange home-court winning streak to 30 straight games – the longest strech in the nation, and boosted the regular season, non-conference victory run to 32 consecutive contests.
Syracuse took a 22-point advantage with 9:30 remaining in the second half, after a 5-0 run led by freshman
Jerami Grant, who hit three straight free throws and a slam to set the score at 61-39.
Detroit then virtually erased the deficit to climb within three points, thanks to 16 unanswered points. Clinging to a 67-64 edge with 29 seconds left, the Orange responded with a series of five free throws from sophomore
Michael Carter-Williams to clinch the win..
Senior
James Southerland led the offense with 22 points. He connected on 7-of-12 from the field, including 5-of-8 on three-point shots. Carter-Williams recorded his sixth straight double-double of the season, contributing 12 points and a team-high 10 assists. Carter-Williams had 10-or-more assists for the seventh time.
The Orange took an early eight-point lead at 20-12. Southerland helped extend the Orange advantage to 14 points after scoring seven consecutive points, a stretch that featuring two back-to-back three's, to set the score at 27-13 with 7:30 remaining in the opening frame.
SU held Detroit to 10-of-29 shooting (.350) and did not give the Titans a single three pointer in the opening 20 minutes. The Orange headed into halftime with a 40-21 lead.
Syracuse is back in action on Dec. 22, where it takes on Temple at Madison Square Garden in the third game of the Chevrolet Gotham Classic.
