Syracuse Can't Dig Itself Out of Hole, Falls to Louisville

The Orange came roaring back late, but it just wasn't enough.

Louisville took over late in the first half, going into the break with a 10 point lead after a 21-4 run. They kept it going in the second half, building a 20 point lead with 15:30 remaining before Syracuse (20-6, 7-6) came to life. The comeback fell short, though, and Louisville (19-6, 8-4) held on for a 73-69 win.

Some bits of tid:

• Coach Rick Pitino knows how to beat Boeheim's zone. Louisville made the extra pass to find the open three point shooter time after time. The Cardinals hit 13 shots from beyond the arc, scoring more than half their points off of three pointers.

Pitino schooled Boeheim yet again (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

• Brandon Triche and Scoop Jardine finally hit outside shots with consistency, combining for eight three pointers and 41 points.

• Inside, though, Rick Jackson had a second consecutive subpar game. He took only four shots, scoring just seven points.

• On the other hand, C.J. Fair continues to impress. He scored 11 points on four of six shooting and grabbed seven rebounds. Fair has shot over 50% in five of the past six games.

• Fab Melo sat out today after missing practice on Thursday. At this point, Melo could use the time off.

• Baye Moussa Keita, who took Melo's spot, left the game with a wrist injury. It's the same one that's been bothering him for a few weeks now, but he insists it's nothing serious.

• Boeheim needs to tweak the minutes distribution. If Melo and Dion Waiters aren't contributing, maybe James Southerland should factor in more. Heck, even Mookie Jones deserves a shot (even if it means he'll take a million of them).

The Orange will not get a chance to avenge its 7th straight loss to Louisville, at least not in the regular season. Syracuse must now turn around for a home game against West Virginia on Monday.

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