The No. 1 Syracuse Orange proved that they did indeed deserve to be in the 2016 NCAA Tournament in absolutely decimating the No. 7 Dayton Flyers in St. Louis today by a score of 70-51. Malachi Richardson led Syracuse with 21 points, while Tyler Roberson chipped in 1o points while pulling down 18 rebounds.
All in all, this game was absolute proof that strength of schedule is indeed a thing. Syracuse made Dayton look foolish in the second half, entering it with a 30-28 lead and then outscoring the Flyers 40-23. Syracuse shot just 40 percent from the field and also committed 15 turnovers, but coach Jim Boeheim’s signature 2-3 zone defense held Dayton to shooting 32 percent from the field.
To add insult to injury, the Flyers shot just 47 percent from the free-throw line and were out-rebounded 48-28. It just goes to show that while Dayton may have had the never-say-die attitude, Syracuse had the same to go with a boatload of tournament experience.
Next for the Orange is a date with the winner of today’s matchup between No. 2 Michigan State and No. 15 Middle Tennessee State, so stay tuned to Campus Sports for further updates!
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*Featured Photo (above) credit to USA TODAY Sports