In a season full of buzzer-beaters, court-stormings and harrowing wins in the Carrier Dome, Saturday’s game was none of the above. Syracuse (18-13, 10-8 Atlantic Coast) demolished Georgia Tech (17-14, 8-10), 90-61, in the Orange’s largest margin of victory in conference play. Andrew White led all scorers with 40 points, capping off a dominant offensive game from the hosts.

Here are three reactions to the game.

A much-needed win

Syracuse and Georgia Tech both entered the regular-season finale with teetering NCAA Tournament chances. Both teams have struggled on the road and both have pulled off surprising upsets at home. With such similar resumes, Saturday’s win was important for the Orange’s resume.

Now SU can look toward next week’s ACC tournament with a bit more comfort, facing far less pressure to win a game outside of the Carrier Dome. It remains to be seen who Syracuse’s opponent will be, but Saturday’s win ensured SU earns a first-round bye and will begin the conference tournament on Wednesday.

White out

In what could be his final game in the Carrier Dome, White strung together a career-best day against the Yellow Jackets. The fifth-year senior poured in a career-high 40 points, putting an exclamation point on what’s been a dominant offensive season for the sharpshooter. He made 8-of-9 3-point attempts and contributed mightily to a game where SU shot 62.5 percent behind the arc.

As Georgia Tech started to chip in to SU’s lead, White was instrumental in a 21-2 second-half run that put the game away. The 6-foot-7 guard buried four 3-pointers en route to scoring 17 of the Orange’s 21 points during that stretch.

Georgia Tech’s best chance to stop White was to stop him from shooting. In the midst of his second-half rampage, the Yellow Jackets blatantly fouled White behind the arc, drawing a couple of claps and a wry smile from head coach Jim Boeheim. White made all three of his free throws.

It should be no surprise that White keyed a Syracuse win. He’s done it all year, but never as much as he did on Saturday.

Jump start

After taking more than five minutes to make a field goal in its game last weekend against Louisville, Syracuse wasted no time against Georgia Tech. Freshman forward Taurean Thompson buried a long jumper on SU’s first possession, and the Orange proceeded to open an early nine-point lead by making its first five baskets. Freshman guard Tyus Battle poured in three 3-pointers, laying the foundation of his 22-point game.

The hot start fueled Syracuse to a 16-point first-half lead, spearheaded by Battle’s 13 points in the opening 20 minutes. The early cushion was vital as SU’s defense started to wear down. The Yellow Jackets scored the last four points of the half before going on a 9-0 run out of halftime to close the Orange’s lead to three.

Published on March 4, 2017 at 6:09 pm

Contact Connor: cgrossma@syr.edu | @connorgrossman