Boston College Athletics
Boston College
Syracuse
No. 17 Eagles Knock Off No. 9 Syracuse, 65-63
February 07, 2001 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 7, 2001
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. - Senior Kenny Harley scored 12 points, including four free throws in the final 20 seconds of the game, to lead 17th-ranked Boston College to a 65-63 BIG EAST win over ninth-ranked Syracuse before a sellout crowd of 8,606 fans at Conte Forum.
The victory raises Boston College's record to 17-2 on the season, 8-1 in BIG EAST action.
Sophomore Troy Bell also netted 12 points, while senior Jonathan Beerbohm added 10 points. Sophomore Uka Agbai scored eight points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds.
Boston College's Agbai scored the game's opening basket and the Eagles never surrendered the lead in the opening half. BC extended its advantage to double digits -- 16-6 -- on Harley's field goal with 12:25 remaining in the half. The Eagles took their biggest lead of the half -- 34-20 -- on a Ryan Sidney field goal with 2:49 to play, but Syracuse scored the final three points of the half.
The visiting Orangemen continued their rally in the second half, outscoring BC 16-3 in the first eight minutes to take a 39-37 lead. Preston Shumpert scored 11 points in the SU run, including three three-point field goals. Syracuse gained its first lead of the night on Damone Brown's old-fashioned three-point play with 12:29 remaining.
The two teams then traded runs. BC scored five consecutive points, before SU answered with a 9-2 run to extend its advantage to 48-44. Boston College then responded with a 10-2 run to claim a 54-50 lead. Junior Brian Ross scored four points in the rally.
Syracuse tied the score three times, the last time coming when Damone Brown hit two free throws to knot the game at 58-58 with 1:42 to play.
BC senior Xavier Singletary's field goal with 39 seconds to play snapped the tie and gave BC a lead it would never relinquish. Harley then sank 4-of-4 free-throw attempts to secure the victory.
Syracuse's Allen Griffin nailed a three-pointer with 5.0 seconds to play to trim the BC margin to 64-63, but Beerbohm sank 1-of-2 free throws with 4.2 seconds remaining to conclude the scoring. Bell made his eighth steal of the night to thwart SU's final opportunity.
Game Notes: BC committed just eight turnovers. The Eagles have now committed fewer than 10 turnovers in four of the last five contests ... BC recorded 12 steals. The Eagles have now made 10 or more steals in 11 games this season. BC actually averages 10.0 steals per game, having made 190 steals in 19 games ... BC shot a season-low 38.3 percent from the field. The Eagles tied their season low with 23 field goals made ... Defensively, however, BC forced 16 SU turnovers, limiting the Orangemen to 45 field-goal attempts. Syracuse made just 22 field goals ... BC outrebounded Syracuse, 34-29 ... The victory over Syracuse snapped the Eagles' five-game losing streak against the Orangemen. BC's last win over Syracuse was a 79-71 victory in Conte Forum on Feb. 4, 1997 ... Troy Bell registered six assists and tied his career high with eight steals. Bell committed just one turnover in 39 minutes.
