This team is something special.  The Orange looked destined to lose its first game of the season after a Tyler Ennis turnover with 15 seconds left. But after a Wolfpack turnover and game-winning layup by C.J. Fair, the Orange are 25-0.
The first half did not go as planned for the Orange. Syracuse only went to the line three times, compared to ten for the Wolfpack. N.C. State also outrebounded the Orange, taking advantage of the lack of depth in the frontcourt.
Boeheim said after the game:
“Baye ran today. I’d say he might be able to go on Wednesday. He has been doing a little bit better.”
Still an unclear answer regarding Baye Moussa Keita’s status going forward but he was warming up with the team before the game.
However, the frontcourt was not the issue for Syracuse. It got a career game from Rakeem Christmas. Christmas finished the night at 14 points, 12 rebounds, 7 blocks and went perfect from the line in all six free-throw attempts. The Philadelphia product kept the Orange in the game until Jerami Grant turned it on in the second half, accumulating 12 points and 14 rebounds.
T.J. Warren contributed 23 points while shooting 50 percent from the field. Kyle Washington had a great night for the Wolfpack with 14 points and 10 boards, most of which came in the first half. Both teams struggled from behind the arc. N.C. State was 4-of-14, while the Orange could only hit two out of the 12 they attempted.
You could get the sense that the Orange felt the pressure of being undefeated even in its own building. Ennis made a few freshman mistakes we have not seen him make, including four turnovers on the night. Said Grant:
‚ÄúWe‚Äôve been figuring out how to win, I feel like if we are in a tough game. It was a little unusual. We had a couple of mistakes at the end of the game. At the same time, we had them locked down on defense. Our defense forced two turnovers in the last minute when we were down. We always look to our defense to pull us through.”
The past two games have had incredible endings for the Orange. However, this game proved there is a lot of work that needs to be done if Syracuse wants to remain undefeated, especially on the road.
Posted by: Zephan Mayell 
4 responses to “Still Perfect! Syracuse Moves to 25-0 After Thrilling Win Over NC State”
This team is something special….
REALLY??
Last 4 games we’re averaging 58 ppg.
We beat PITT who has lost 4 of their last 6 with a buzzer beater…
We beat NC State at the dome…the Wolfpack is 16-9..5-6 in the ACC.
WE beat UVA or Duke, I’ll believe you.
It appears that when the team is sluggish.one player has stepped up their game to be the difference this season. Last night it was Rak who stepped up. Despit CJ’s last two points aided by the goaltending call the Orange squeezed out another win that was too close to be loss#1. This probably ends on Duke’s home court next Saturday.
I really wanna know what’s wrong /w Baye. Is this another injury we won’t find out about till we get our seed an “oh by the way he’s out for the season.” ? I didn’t see much of this game bc I pasted out before it started but shouldn’t have been that big of a struggle vs NC. State. Although ppl need to realize that SU won’t blow a lot of teams out bc most teams are going to sit on the ball and work the clock. This is impart due to the fact that our defense is so good. If you adjust for tempo SU’s offense is one of the best in the country. Another issue that is contributing to SU’s low scoring is that teams get a lot of defensive rebounds and get to work the clock again. We adjusted to teams in the past that did this by a leaking our guards out and getting out on the break and also running a press to speed the other team up. The problem this is yr is we don’t have much depth. Right now SU only running 6 guys and before that only played 7. This is bc the staff done a great job recruiting and have lost ppl to the draft. Next season SU won’t have depth problems. I truely feel Ennis will be back and even /w Cj and grant leaving for the draft we will be loaded at the wings /w BJ, MC, and Roberson. At center even with Baye leaving SU will have three centers to use in Chino, DC and RAK. The guard position will be loaded as well /w silent G, Patterson, Joesph and Ennis.
I’ve been surfing online more than 3 hours today, yet I never found any interesting article
like yours. It’s pretty worth enough for me. Personally, if all web owners and bloggers
made good content as you did, the internet will be much
more useful than ever before.