No. 23 Syracuse women’s basketball falls to Clemson in overtime, 86-77

The No. 23 Syracuse Orange women’s basketball team (7-3, 4-3 ACC) suffered their second straight loss of the season in overtime at Clemson (8-5, 3-5 ACC) on Sunday, 77-86. The Orange overcame a 25-point deficit at halftime to force the extra minutes. Kiara Lewis led all scorers with 25 points and eight rebounds.

Emily Engstler tallied 17 points (8-11) and nine rebounds. Kamilla Cardoso also contributed 12 points and six blocks, while Priscilla Williams added 10 points.

Recap

Tiana Mangakahia, Kiara Lewis, Priscilla Williams, Digna Strautmane, and Kamilla Cardoso started for the Orange.

The Tigers quickly gained a double-digit lead to open the game, 11-1. A three from Lewis marked the team’s first field goal of the game at 5:47, 11-4 Tigers. Syracuse started the contest 0-7 from the field. Clemson continued to build its lead through the first quarter, ending the frame with a 29-10 score. Lewis scored five of the Orange’s 10 points. Syracuse shot 15.8 percent from the floor (3-19) and committed five turnovers, three from Mangakahia, in the first quarter.

Syracuse began to find their offense in the second quarter. The Orange opened on a 9-0 run, seven points from Strautmane, to make it 32-19 Tigers at the seven-minute mark. Clemson answered right back, continuing to grow its advantage through the rest of the half. The Tigers went up 52-27 into the locker rooms.

The Orange shot 27.8 percent from the field and 15.4 percent from three, compared to the Tigers’ 47.6 percent and 43.8 percent in the opening half. Syracuse committed nine turnovers and was outrebounded 20-30. Clemson also outscored Syracuse in second chance points (13-2) and points in the paint (20-12). Lewis and Strautmane led the team with nine points each in the first half.

Syracuse opened the second half on a 15-2 run to cut the Clemson lead to 54-42 at 4:24 of the third quarter. Lewis tallied six points in the run, while Cardoso contributed four. The Orange cut the lead to single digits, 56-48, at 2:24 with a three from Williams. Clemson held a 61-50 advantage into the final quarter of the game. The Orange outscored the Tigers 23-9 in the third and did not commit a turnover. Syracuse shot 50 percent from the floor and 33.3 percent from behind the arc, compared to Clemson’s 25 percent and 0-4 from three in the third quarter.

A trey from Williams opened the scoring for the Orange in the fourth, 61-53 Tigers. Syracuse cut the score to two possessions with a Lewis layup, 64-59 at 4:40. Another set of scores from Lewis made the contest a one-point game, 66-65, at 2:25. A Clemson free throw put the Tigers up, 67-65. Cardoso grabbed the rebound off the missed second free throw to set up a Lewis three-point scoring play, giving the Orange their first lead of the game at 1:04, 68-67. Clemson answered with a trey to lead, 70-68, but a jumper from Engstler tied the game at 70-all to force overtime.

After trailing by 25 at halftime, Syracuse shot 59.3 percent from the field and outscored Clemson 43-18 in the second half. Lewis and Cardoso tallied double figures in the final two quarters with 16 and 10, respectively.

Clemson opened the extra quarter with a trey. Engstler responded with a jumper to make it a one-point game at 3:26, 73-72 Tigers. Clemson went on a 5-0 run to lead 78-72 at 1:53. A trey from Engstler kept Syracuse within one possession, 78-75, at 1:33. However, the Tigers continued to grow their lead and went on to win 86-77.

Stats

• Syracuse shot 40 percent from the field and 25 percent from three. Clemson shot 41 percent from the floor and 40 percent from three. The Orange committed 20 turnovers and scored 23 points off 24 Tiger turnovers. Clemson outrebounded Syracuse 54-39 and outscored ‘Cuse in second chance points (22-7). The Orange held the advantage in points in the paint (38-30) and fast break points (8-5).
• Mangakahia dished out 10 assists and recorded four rebounds and two steals. She was 1-9 from the field (2 points) and committed seven turnovers. Mangakahia fouled out in overtime.
• Strautmane tallied nine points, six rebounds, and a steal.
• Kamilla Cardoso also recorded six rebounds and two steals.
• Engstler surpassed 500 career points in the win. She also tallied four blocks and two steals.
• Maeva Djaldi-Tabdi contributed two points and a block for the Orange.
• Kendall Spray led the Tigers with 24 points and six rebounds.

Takeaways

Positive: Kiara Lewis and Emily Engstler!

Negative: The Orange were all over the place, making bad turnovers and leaving Tigers wide open. Two straight conference losses are not a good sign for Coach Q’s squad.

Syracuse returns to the Carrier Dome on Thursday to battle Pittsburgh. The game is scheduled for 6 p.m. EST on ACCNX.