NC State basketball can’t find late equalizer, falls 75-72 to Syracuse in ACC road game
Even a historic night by Jarkel Joiner wasn’t enough Tuesday for N.C. State.
The No. 23 Wolfpack, which has won its share of close games this season, was edged 75-72 by Syracuse in a road game at JMA Wireless Dome that left NCSU coach Kevin Keatts furious.
Joiner did all he could to pull out a win for the Pack (20-7, 10-6 ACC). The point guard had 15 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, becoming the fourth men’s player in school history to record a triple-double and the first since Markell Johnson against The Citadel in December 2019.
Joiner had a chance to tie the score but missed a 3-pointer with 18 seconds left in regulation. After making 15 of 30 shots from 3-point range Saturday in a 30-point romp of a road win at Boston College, the Pack was 9-of-34 against the Syracuse zone.
Keatts was not happy with the officiating, saying, “I’m one of those guys who believes the game should be won on the floor by the players. It was tough for me because at the end of the game I thought we had five calls that went completely against us.
“Not to take away from Syracuse. They won. It has nothing to do with that.”
Keatts also had a few words with Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim in the handshake line after the game, saying it was a “personal conversation” while adding there was “no animosity.”
The Wolfpack, trailing 73-72, had possession with less than a minute remaining in the second half. But center D.J. Burns was called for an offensive foul with 49.3 seconds remaining as he made a move to the basket — Burns’ fifth of the game.
Syracuse’s Judah Mintz, who had 20 points and nine assists, then was fouled on a drive with 24.4 seconds left. The freshman guard made both free throws for a three-point lead for the Orange (16-10, 9-6 ACC), which won its third in a row.
“We fought, man,” Keatts said. “It was a great ACC game, on the road, back and forth, two teams that are fighting in February. I thought our guys played good enough to win the game. We just came up short.”
In addition to Joiner, Burns and Jack Clark each had 15 points for the the Pack and Terquavion Smith scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half. Clark, in his second game back from a groin injury, played 31 minutes and had nine boards.
Jesse Edwards, active all game, had 18 points and 16 rebounds. On one second-half play, Edwards hit a desperation 3-pointer just before the shot-clock buzzer — the first 3 of Edwards’ college career. With 9:07 left, the Orange led 59-54.
The Pack made more 3-pointers, had more assists, more rebounds, more points off turnovers, more bench points, more second-chance points, more blocks and more steals than the Orange.
The Wolfpack also had more fouls called against it: 19 to the Orange’s 11. Syracuse shot 15 free throws to the Pack’s five.
Smith struggled throughout the first half and ended the half with more fouls (3) than point (2). But he kept his poise and found the range in the second half, tying the score 63-63 with a 3-pointer — his third of the half — with 5:11 to play.
Another 3 by Smith made it a 68-65 lead for the Pack, but the Orange surged ahead as Mintz hit a 3-pointer after a loose-ball fight that Syracuse’s Edwards won to prevent an Orange turnover.
“Judah was really good. He was solid,” Keatts said of Mintz. “By February he’s not a freshman anymore. He’s grown older.”
The Pack used different approaches in attacking the Orange zone. Burns was used inside the foul line, then Joiner and Clark.
But the Wolfpack’s shooting was spotty. Early in the second half, both Smith and Joiner had 3-point air-balls on a possession, although Clark did have a putback after the Joiner miss.
Burns picked up his fourth foul with more than 13 minutes left in regulation, leaving the game, but Smith was giving the Pack some offensive help by then, hitting two 3-pointers — the ball glancing off the side of the backboard on the second.
Smith had a miserable first half. He missed seven of his eight shots, several forced, and all four of his 3-point attempts. Smith was left in the game with two personal fouls, a rarity for Keatts, then picked up his third with 1:47 left in the first half.
The Pack, even with Smith firing blanks, handled the Orange zone well in the first 10 minutes of the game, using an 11-0 run to take a 19-10 lead. But after an inside score by Burns with 7:36 left in the first half, making it 21-12, the Orange made a push with a 9-0 run and led 35-31 at the half.
Next up for the Pack: North Carolina on Sunday at PNC Arena.
“I told our guys, ‘Great fight, way to battle,’” Keatts said. “And we move on.”
This story was originally published February 14, 2023 at 9:12 PM.
