UNCG suffers NIT loss to Syracuse

Published 12:00 am Thursday, March 16, 2017

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Andrew White III made seven of his nine 3-point attempts and scored 34 points in leading Syracuse to a 90-77 victory over UNC Greensboro in a first-round NIT game on Wednesday night, giving coach Jim Boeheim a landmark 903rd win.

Boeheim moved a victory ahead of Bob Knight for second place all-time in Division I basketball. Boeheim’s total does not include 101 wins vacated as a result of NCAA penalties.

White set the Syracuse single-season record with 109 3-pointers, on 269 attempts. The record had been held by current Orange assistant coach Gerry McNamara (2004-05), who made 107 on 315 tries.

Tyus Battle added 20 points for Syracuse (19-14), a No. 1 seed who will host fifth-seeded Mississippi in the second round. Tyler Lydon had 13 points and 10 rebounds for his eighth double-double this season.

Diante Baldwin led the Spartans (25-10), who were three-way co-champs in the Southern Conference, with 19 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. Francis Alonso, the team’s leading scorer at 15.2 ppg, was 1-of-9 shooting for three points.

After getting into the NCAA Tournament last year with a 19-13 record and reaching the Final Four, Syracuse was left out despite beating three top-10 teams.