New Year’s nail-biter in Syracuse, NC State match

A late turnover and missed free throw sealed Syracuse’s loss against sixth-ranked NC State.

Starting 2023 by knocking off the sixth-ranked team in the country would have been quite an accomplishment for the Orange. 

For Head Coach Felisha Legette-Jack and her squad, unfortunately, the taste of victory fell just short of the finish line to the Wolfpack, losing 56-54. 

NC State started off the game on the right foot, commanding a 12 point lead at 19-7 where the Wolfpack shot 87.5 percent from the free throw line and made seven shots from the floor. The Orange were slow out of the gate, but rallied late in the first quarter to draw within seven, 22-15. 

Dyaisha Fair and Georgia Woolley led the way in the first two quarters. Both players had nine points entering halftime and had scored over 50 percent of the team’s total. 

Both teams shared a similarity in dismal three point shooting in the first half. NC State was 1-10 and Syracuse was 2-12 from downtown. 

NC State’s River Baldwin was playing solid inside near the rim as she led her team in scoring with eight points at the midway mark. Syracuse found themselves trailing by eight at the half, 34-26. 

Poor shooting and allowing NC State second chance opportunities was Syracuse’s Achilles heel in the first 20 minutes, but then, the tables started to turn in the third quarter. 

Although the Orange had the same players on the floor from the first half, it almost looked like an entirely different team. Syracuse came out with energy, composure and moxy to put up one of their best performances in a single quarter. 

Georgia Woolley hit back-to-back three point shots and a layup to tie the game at 34. She had 17 points, and the entire stadium roared in shock and surprise at the absurd comeback spree. 

Syracuse finished the third quarter with 23 points. The defense electrified the JMA Wireless Dome by holding the Wolfpack to just six points. The Orange shot 53 percent from the field and went 4-5 from downtown to bolster their first lead of the game. Control and momentum were captured going into the fourth quarter up by nine, 49-40. 

So, where did it all go wrong? The fourth quarter had jaws dropping and heads shaking as Syracuse played eight straight scoreless minutes to start the final quarter until Alaina Rice made a layup with 1:58 remaining. 

At that point, NC State scratched and clawed their way back, and took the lead 53-49 before Rice’s bucket. 

It all came down to three final plays. Syracuse trailed 55-53 with five seconds to go when Georgia Woolley was fouled in shooting motion. She hit the first free throw to snatch her twenty-third point of the game, but her second attempt bobbled out to leave the Wolfpack the lead. 

With a 55-54 lead, NC State’s inbounded the ball, but Syracuse’s Dyaisha Fair got a hand on it for a jump ball call and possession for Syracuse. 3.9 seconds were left on the clock and the Orange had one last chance to win. 

In a surprising decision, after shooting 0-6 from the field and not playing much of the second half, Teisha Hyman subbed in to inbound the basketball from the sideline. The whistle was blown, Hyman threw a cross-court pass to the far side block to Dariauna Lewis, but her throw misfired and sailed out of bounds. 

NC State knocked down a final free throw, and the Orange fell late to the Wolfpack. 

This was a devastating and heart breaking loss for the Orange, as the chance of a lifetime to take down the sixth-ranked team in the country slipped through their fingers in the fourth quarter.

Georgia Woolley led all scorers for a Syracuse career-high 23 points where she hit four three-point shots. Dyaisha Fair reached double digits again with 14. Those two were the only Syracuse scorers above 10 points. 

Alaina Rice, Dariauna Lewis and Cheyenne McEvans each had four points in the contest. Asia Strong posted three and Kyra Wood put up two points. 

Dyaisha Fair looked extremely distraught during the postgame press conference with her head down and full of emotion. She only had one comment on what was going through her head.

“Just thinking about how we can continue to get better,” said Fair. 

Georgia Woolley discussed the mentality change out of halftime that led to an incredible third quarter.

“We knew we weren’t going to win the game unless we played defense,” said Woolley. “We all locked into that and came out in the second half… but we got to have that the whole forty minutes.”  

Despite the tough result, Coach Felisha Legette-Jack is looking at this game as a positive stepping stone.

“I will tell you one thing: I don’t feel like we lost,” said Legette-Jack. “I think that we have learned a lot and learned some valuable lessons.”

Syracuse drops to 10-4 overall and 1-2 in ACC play. The Orange will play host to Pittsburgh on Thursday, January 5th at 6:00 p.m. in the Dome.