A brutal buzzer beater hands SU their third straight loss
With 20 seconds left in overtime, Syracuse Orange guard Georgia Woolley fired off a corner three that missed the mark, but found its way into the hands of Izabel Varejão. The senior center quickly let a second-chance jumper go from inside, and this time it fell through the net, giving SU a one-point lead.
The only problem? They left too much time on the clock.
SMU’s Nya Robertson took the ball near half-court, moved it herself down low, and floated a shot off the backboard and in with just a second remaining.
Nya Robertson gets the defender to bite on the pump fake and puts up the jumper for the win with 1.4 seconds left. SMU beats Syracuse 72-71 pic.twitter.com/BKY4Ty4bxT
— NCAA Buzzer Beaters & Game Winners (@NCAABuzzerBters) January 10, 2025
Her 12th basket of the night was the decider as the Syracuse Orange fell 72-71 inside the JMA Dome on Wednesday. Felisha Legette-Jack’s squad dropped to 6-9 and 0-4 in ACC play.
Robertson was the story of the day, scoring a game-high 28 points while shooting 48% from the field. The junior from Fort Worth continues to be a force in her school’s first ACC campaign – she sits as the No. 3 scorer in the conference after her ninth 20+ point performance this season. The Mustangs improve to 10-6, 2-2 and earn their first ACC road win.
The Orange offense was sporadic, as the team shot shot 36.8% (25/68) from the field and just 18.8% (3/16) from deep. Still, they had their chances to steal a win, such as a six point lead late in the third quarter, and were leading by three inside the final minute before SMU’s Kaysia Woods nailed a tying trifecta with 32 seconds left in regulation.
Four SU players ended up with double figures: Woolley led with 18, Varejão tied a season-high with 15, Journey Thompson scored 13, and Sophie Burrows had 11.
Woolley also reached a career milestone by scoring her 1,000th point in an Orange uniform – though she herself said it doesn’t hold much weight right now following the loss.
The other unfortunate part of the game had to do with the weather outside. The reason for the morning start time was Syracuse’s annual School Day, which typically draws the largest WBB crowd of the season. With most closed due to icy roads, only a few showed up this time.
SU returns to the Dome Sunday night when they face Miami (11-4). Tip-off is at 6 and it’ll be broadcast on ACC Network.