Syracuse beats Boston College 79-65 after slow start

SYRACUSE, NY (AP) — Joe Girard scored 24 points, Benny Williams had a double-double and Syracuse overcame a slow start…

SYRACUSE, NY (AP) — Joe Girard scored 24 points, Benny Williams had a double-double and Syracuse overcame a slow start to defeat Boston College 79-65 on Saturday.

Syracuse trailed by seven points with about 13 minutes to go in the first half, but Girardi, who had 13 first-half points, hit three 3-pointers to lead the Orange to a 36-27 halftime lead. The Orange fell behind midway through the second half but edged the Eagles by 15 points in the final 10 minutes.

Williams scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the Orange (9-5, 2-1 ACC) and Judah Mintz had 18 points with seven assists to go. Jesse Edwards had 10 points and eight rebounds.

BC’s Prince Aligbe scored nine points early in the second half, then five straight points from Devin McGlockton – two free throws and a 3-pointer – gave the Eagles a 48-46 lead with 12:26 left. About a minute later, Jaeden Zackery’s three-point game again put the Eagles by a lead, but it was to be their final lead.

Justin Taylor hit a 3-pointer putting Syracuse back in the lead, and the Orange built a 10-point lead when Girard hit a 3-pointer with 6:06 points remaining. Syracuse led 65-55 and maintained a lead of at least eight points the rest of the way.

Makai Ashton-Langford had 14 points for Boston College (7-7, 1-2). Aligbe and TJ Bickerstaff each scored 12 points.

Syracuse has won six of its last seven games and defeated Boston College for a ninth straight season.

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