Syracuse women’s basketball: Orange fall 70-67 to Virginia

The Orange could not stop a Cavalier comeback, blowing a 14-point lead.

After a week-long break, the Syracuse Orange (8-13, 2-8) returned home looking to build momentum after a much-needed 67-55 win over Clemson. Instead, they fell just short against the Virginia Cavaliers in a 70-67 loss at the JMA Wireless Dome on National Girls and Women in Sports Day.

Both teams, donning pink warmups to celebrate the occasion, entered the matchup near the bottom of the ACC standings. Syracuse had just notched its second conference win against the Clemson Tigers a week prior, and Virginia had been on a four-game losing skid, the most recent of which came from a 74-77 loss against the Miami Hurricanes.

Prior to this matchup, Syracuse had won the last four meetings against Virginia, but the Cavaliers snapped that streak with a late push in the fourth quarter.

Virginia’s Latasha Lattimore, a 6’4 senior forward, scored the first points for the Cavs just over 30 seconds into the contest. Syracuse opened the game strong, with Sophie Burrows putting the Orange on the board with a three-pointer. Virginia responded with three straight buckets, led by junior guard Paris Clark’s aggressive drives to the basket.

The Cavaliers’ interior defense was relentless from the jump, throwing double teams at the likes of Izabel Varejão, but the Orange forward powered through to keep the game close.

With just under four minutes left in the first quarter, Syracuse went on an 8-0 run, fueled by strong rebounding and a fast-break layup from Georgia Woolley off a Dominique Camp assist. Burrows caught fire early, tallying seven first-quarter points, but Virginia’s Olivia McGhee drained a three to close out the quarter, giving the Cavaliers a 23-20 lead.

The second quarter was defined by physicality and defensive intensity. Virginia struggled to score, going over four minutes without a field goal to start the period. Kyra Wood gave Syracuse an early boost with a putback layup after a series of offensive rebounds, and Camp put the Orange back in front with a mid-range jumper.

A particularly impressive hustle play from Georgia Woolley ignited the crowd — the second largest crowd at the Dome for this squad thus far in the season — leading to a corner three from Burrows that pushed Syracuse’s lead to four.

However, Virginia found their rhythm late in the quarter, with Kymora Johnson and Lattimore stringing together key buckets. Despite some missed free throws from Syracuse, the Orange entered halftime with a slim 37-36 advantage.

Both teams struggled from beyond the arc in the first half; Syracuse shot just 11.1% (1-9), while Virginia managed only 20% (1-5). Burrows led all scorers with 12 points, while Virginia’s Lattimore controlled the paint with 10 points and five rebounds.

Syracuse came out of the break firing, as Woolley nailed a three-pointer on the opening possession. Less than a minute later, Varejão grabbed an offensive board and converted the putback layup, prompting a visibly frustrated Virginia team to call a timeout.

Burrows continued her hot shooting, knocking down her fourth three-pointer of the night to push Syracuse’s lead to 52-40. Virginia looked fatigued, committing defensive lapses that led to easy ‘Cuse buckets. A Wood layup extended the lead to 14, which would be the biggest Orange lead of the night, and Syracuse seemed to be in full control.

Late in the third quarter, the Cavaliers slowly but surely clawed back. Lattimore sparked the rally with a tough layup inside, and Virginia capitalized on Syracuse turnovers to trim the deficit. A three-pointer from Lattimore in the final minute helped the Cavaliers cut the gap to 58-52 heading into the fourth.

Burrows notched her first career 20-point game early in the final period, but Virginia refused to go away. Johnson and Wood traded layups before Lattimore drilled another three-pointer. With 6:48 left, Edessa Noyan’s layup tied the game at 62, capping off Virginia’s comeback.

Out of a timeout, the Cavaliers deployed a full-court press, forcing Syracuse into a scoring drought. The Orange managed just one point over the next three minutes, struggling at the free-throw line. Meanwhile, Lattimore continued her dominant performance, scoring back-to-back buckets to give Virginia a 68-63 lead with 2:19 remaining.

Despite a late layup from Burrows to cut the deficit to three, Syracuse couldn’t capitalize on their final possession. Two missed three-point attempts by Woolley and Camp sealed the Orange’s fate, as Virginia walked away with a hard-fought 70-67 victory.

“We had three great quarters,” said Coach Felisha Legette-Jack. “Then we panicked.”

Burrows finished with a career-high 22 points and four steals, while Wood recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 18 points and 15 rebounds.

For Virginia, Lattimore was unstoppable, posting 26 points, six rebounds, and three blocks. Johnson also played a crucial role, stuffing the stat sheet with 17 points, six rebounds, eight assists and four steals.

Syracuse’s struggles at the free-throw line (5-10) and from three (just 6-25) proved costly down the stretch. The Orange will look to bounce back in their next matchup against the Virginia Tech Hokies (15-7, 6-5) on Thursday.