In another Carrier Dome epic, John Gillon banked in a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to pilot Syracuse (17-12, 9-7 Atlantic Coast) to an 78-75 upset over No. 10 Duke (22-6, 10-5). At this point in the season, it’s tough to muster an explanation about SU’s dominance against elite conference opponents at home. The Orange will take it, especially with two games remaining in the regular season.

Here’s three reactions to Wednesday’s stunner.

Gillon’s second-half surge

Leading yet another double-digit Syracuse comeback, capped off by his buzzer-beater, Gillon emerged with 19 points in the second half. Three of those came at the free-throw line, where Gillon maintained his school record of 43 consecutive made free throws.

In part, the 6-foot point guard was the catalyst to another comeback by helping the Orange work better off ball screens. Syracuse didn’t do much damage from behind the arc, but Gillon was able to free himself up a couple times to convert from 3. For his first points of the second stanza, Gillon knifed through the Blue Devils’ defense and laid in an and-1 layup that hung on the rim for a fleeting moment. He came down two Syracuse next possessions later to lay in another bucket, then tied the game at 54 eight minutes later with a 3-pointer, setting the stage for another tight game in the Carrier Dome against an elite opponent.

Another resume boost

Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim has lauded his team’s ability to play in the final minutes of close games in conference play, and Wednesday was no different. SU entered the final two minutes tied at 73 after Battle hit a mid-range jumper, and the Orange rode Gillon for its final five points of the game, including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer off the backboard.

The Orange didn’t prove anything we didn’t already know: It can win — against anyone — in the Carrier Dome. Regardless, Syracuse now has wins against Duke, Virginia and Florida State, all when those teams were ranked in the Top 10. The most important game now remaining on SU’s schedule is at Louisville. Syracuse is just 2-9 when away from the Dome, so its NCAA Tournament fate may lie in how SU does on the road.

The big short

Freshman forward Taurean Thompson has demonstrated exceptional play for most of this season, and against Georgia Tech last weekend, he did it for longer than he ever had. Thompson played a career-high 33 minutes against the Yellow Jackets, but was on the court 22 minutes against the Blue Devils. The freshman didn’t play poorly for long stretches, but his fleeting defensive mistakes led Boeheim to yank Thompson, SU’s most reliable offensive threat in the first half.

The 6-foot-10 Thompson once again posed as a huge threat in the paint, scoring 11 points in a game where the Orange made only six 3-pointers. The problem is that when Thompson sat, Syracuse’s offense sunk.

It’s clear against teams with a good 3-point defense, Thompson can key the offense.

Published on February 22, 2017 at 9:23 pm

Contact Connor: cgrossma@syr.edu | @connorgrossman