Syracuse 107, California 100 2OT: chaotic game tips way of the Orange

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Syracuse welcomed Chris Bell and the California Golden Bears to town for the first game of a two-game homestand, and it was an absolute wire-to-wire thriller in the Dome, one that would need more than the forty regulated minutes.

And despite countless missed free throws down the stretch, aggressive takes from Nate Kingz and JJ Starling, who combined for 48 points, helped lift Syracuse in both overtime periods when they needed it most, giving them a 107-100 win over the Golden Bears.

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And this was a game that saw just about everything. Two power outages, 67 combined free throw attempts, 28 lead changes, 11 combined players in double figures, and even William Kyle being forced to hobble off the floor late.

But despite everything that went wrong throughout the game, Syracuse experienced a feeling that they have not had much of late, a win in a close game down the stretch.

But the storylines began before the game even started, as one of the glaring questions Syracuse fans wanted answered was whether guard Kiyan Anthony would see the floor after being benched due to what Coach Autry determined was a coaching decision against Virginia. However, that question was answered quickly. Anthony checked into the game with 12:26 to go in the first half, but his impact in the early going was minimal, scoring only two points in ten minutes.

And for most of the first half, the impact Syracuse’s offense was providing as a whole was minimal as well.

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That was until the final two minutes. With Syracuse trailing 33-29, Kingz went on a run of his own. The lefty scored six consecutive points, and at halftime, the game was tied at 35 apiece.

Cal, the third-best three-point shooting team in the ACC, actually took six fewer threes than the Orange in the first half, but was led by forward John Camden’s eight points.

However, another glaring takeaway from the first 20 minutes was the lack of production from forward Donnie Freeman. The senior only had three points on 1-4 shooting in his 13 minutes played before the break.

Coming out of the half, both teams continued to trade baskets in the back-and-forth affair, and then, with 14:16 to go, the power went out inside the Dome, and all of a sudden, Syracuse started to show some offensive promise.

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The outage actually sparked an 8-0 run for the Orange, and the Golden Bears were forced to use a timeout with 12:40 to go in the game, with Syracuse leading 52-47, and it felt like this might be the time where they would create some separation.

But then Cal’s leading scorer, Dai Dai Ames, woke up as he scored seven straight for the Golden Bears, who snatched the lead right back 62-20.

A few minutes later, with the game tied at 69, Chris Bell struck from the top of the key. He had not been afraid to shoot it all game long, and his third triple of the game gave Cal a 72-69 lead, a lead that they would hold until the final minutes.

And just like they had been all game long, that was when Syracuse delivered another response. After missing four of their last five free throws, Kingz connected with an “and-1” layup to give Syracuse a 75-74 lead with 1:30 left, and then seconds later, after two Golden Bear free throws, Nait George connected a corner three, and the Orange led 78-76.

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But Cal would tie it up on a beautiful scoop layup from Ames, and then two poor offensive possessions from each team would keep the game tied as it would head into overtime.

In the first overtime period, there was another power outage, which forced the game to be played on auxiliary power. But both teams agreed to finish the game instead of calling it and letting it hang in the balance. Then, some huge plays from Kingz and Starling had Syracuse clinging to a two-point lead, but an offensive rebound and a putback at the buzzer from Milos Ilic would even the score at 91. Five more minutes were put on the clock.

And in the second overtime, there was finally some separation from the Orange. The fouls from Cal started to add up, and Syracuse took advantage. They would outscore Cal 16-9 and never trail in the overtime period as the Orange got it done.

Kingz led the way with 27 points. Starling had 21. Nait George had 14 points and 10 assists while William Kyle finished with 15 points, 16 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Ames led Cal with 23 while John Camden had 21 and Chris Bell scored 18 in his return to the Dome.

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Syracuse is back in action on Saturday against SMU.