Pitt Drops ACC Game On Road To Syracuse

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — When the game was on the line, Marek Dolezaj stood tall for Syracuse. The slender 6-foot-10 native of Slovakia had 17 points and seven rebounds, Buddy Boeheim added 21 points, and the Orange held off Pittsburgh 69-61 on Saturday. The Orange won despite off nights for two of their leading scorers. Syracuse had surged at the start and led by as many as 20 points, but after Ryan Murphy’s 3-pointer from the top of the key moved Pittsburgh within 59-54 with 3:31 remaining in the game, Dolezaj stood tall. He hit a floater in the lane, put back a miss by Elijah Hughes, blocked a lob attempt, fed Hughes for a fast-break dunk, and sank two free throws in the final seconds to frustrate the Panthers.