Syracuse overwhelms Middle Tennessee to seal Sweet 16 berth
It was less than two weeks ago when Syracuse lost for a fifth time in six games and was firmly on the NCAA tournament bubble.
You won’t find many who question the Orange’s tournament invitation now.
Behind a dominant second half and a big performance from hot-shooting senior Michael Gbinije, the tenth-seeded Orange decimated No. 15 seed Middle Tennessee State 75-50 to move on to the Sweet 16.
And while Gbinije led the way with 23 points on a sizzling 10-of-14 shooting, the Orange also had three others – Tyler Lydon (14 points, 7 rebounds, 6 blocks), Tyler Roberson (12 points, 9 rebounds) and Trevor Cooney (12 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists) – in double figures to lead the program to its first Sweet 16 since 2013. The Orange shot 55.1 percent from the field while knocking down 8-of-20 (40 percent) shots from deep.
Fresh off its shocking upset of mighty Michigan State, Middle Tennessee couldn’t quite replicate its March magic from earlier in the week. The Blue Raiders shot 57.9 from three in their win over MSU, but were limited to just 33 percent (8/24) on Sunday. Though sophomore bomber Giddy Potts was able to knock down a trio of threes, the Orange put the clamps on MTSU’s other top scorers with Reggie Upshaw, Perrin Buford and Darnell Harris – all of whom average double figures – combining for just 21 points on 8-of-35 from the field.
It didn’t take long for the Orange to open up a double digit lead in the first half, but the Blue Raiders were able to claw back and cut the deficit to just four, 31-27, at halftime.
MTSU kept things close and even briefly seized the lead in the second half, but Syracuse exploded with a 21-2 run over a 10-minute period to completely put the game out of reach. The Blue Raiders connected on four of their first five second half field goal attempts, but fell victim to Syracuse’s zone D and missed on 15 of their next 16 as Syracuse’s lead ballooned from 40-39 to 61-41.
Syracuse, which will enter Sweet 16 play alongside five of its ACC conference mates, will square off with No. 11 seed Gonzaga in Chicago on Friday.
On the other side, Middle Tennessee finishes its season at 25-10.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
