DURHAM, N.C. — The only sound left was a deafening silence. Duke’s body-painted student section, wrapped around the court only feet from the sideline, was once the pulse that made Cameron Indoor Stadium rock. The arena roared as they pounded their feet to the ground and threw their hands in the air.

No more. They fell into a hush.

Last February, the same section screamed, “N-I-T!” as then-No. 5 Duke pulled away with a 16-point victory. Monday night, they created a chorus of delirium against the Orange, pulling away to a 12-0 start. But Syracuse (12-5, 3-1 Atlantic Coast) shot 44 percent from deep against the top-ranked Blue Devils (14-2, 3-1) to pull off a miracle, 95-91, in overtime.

As the buzzer sounded, Duke stood motionless and, slowly, retreated toward their locker room. In one of college basketball’s most raucous environments, the Orange clawed back despite getting bullied inside. Despite early foul trouble. Despite several missed layups. Despite senior point guard Frank Howard not scoring until 26 minutes into the game.

“The start we had was just about as nightmarish as you could have,” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. “It was really difficult with Zion (Williamson) inside. The difference was Paschal (Chukwu) and Frank.”

Alexandra Moreo | Senior Staff Photographer

Junior guard Tyus Battle punished the Duke defense for 32 points. He was flanked by Elijah Hughes (20 points), Howard (16), Oshae Brissett (14) and Chukwu (10), who chipped in a career-high 18 rebounds in the Orange’s most balanced offensive performance of the season. Forty-eight hours after falling by 14 to Georgia Tech, SU picked up a massive victory.

Even though freshman Cam Reddish was not playing due to an illness, the Blue Devils bounded to a hot start. “Every time, we can take it to the basket,” Duke junior forward Jack White told his teammates in a huddle. “Every time.” SU appeared out of sorts, outmatched and depleted, with Duke in full command. After Hughes missed a layup, associate head coach Adrian Autry turned to assistant coach Gerry McNamara: “Holy sh*t, man.”

But two unrelated events brought the Orange back within reach: Duke freshman guard Tre Jones, the initiator and best defensive player, went down with a shoulder injury midway through the first half. He didn’t return. And Boeheim called an early timeout that allowed the Orange to regroup. Battle grew more aggressive, and SU cobbled together enough buckets to erase the early deficit and gain their first lead with 5:11 to play in the first stanza.

Alexandra Moreo | Senior Staff Photographer

To end the half, Syracuse pressured Duke and forced a shot-clock violation. That gave SU 2.7 seconds to get a shot off. Battle was double-teamed, but the second option, Hughes, caught the inbounds pass and heaved a three-quarter-court shot. Bull’s eye. The arena fell silent as Syracuse players huddled near midcourt. Backed by 7-for-10 shooting from deep, SU entered the break down one with 48 points — just 11 shy of their game total against Georgia Tech.

“We did a lot of balls screens with Tyus and Frank, try to get them to go downhill,” Boeheim said. “If they switched, they had a center. If they tried to get over them, they had an edge to get to the basket.”

Syracuse’s defensive game plan centered on packing the paint. If Duke were to beat them, it’d be via the deep ball. Yet the Blue Devils found room inside. As a result, Autry urged the SU guards to sit back. Don’t give away the 3 but clog the top of the key. Syracuse’s first-half run coincided with that defensive tweak. Forcing Duke outside became the formula, as the Blue Devils shot just 20.9 percent from deep on 43 attempts.

Alexandra Moreo | Senior Staff Photographer

In the second half, both teams traded baskets. SU continued to allow — almost bait — Duke to shoot 3s. RJ Barrett, Williamson and White all struggled from deep. They became hesitant as a result. Their only legitimate source of production was inside, usually Barrett or Williamson, the league’s top scorers.

Meanwhile, Battle attacked the rim with a fire and aggression. He said he knows he needs to do more: drive more, score more, involve others, more. He screamed after an and-one. He followed it up with a 17-foot jumper to hush the crowd. With a minute left in regulation, Battle knocked down a fadeaway in the corner. Thirty points. Syracuse by one. The arena fell quiet. With five seconds, the ball was in Battle’s hands again. In isolation, he missed a 3-pointer from the right wing to force overtime.

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“I’m just in attack mode, and I tried to make something happen every time I came down the floor,” Battle said. “That’s really it.”

Battle didn’t let up. A Hughes layup got SU started in the third frame, then Battle drilled a jumper that made Syracuse football legend Donovan McNabb, standing behind Boeheim, double-take. A Howard steal and layup put SU up three. A couple of possessions later, Howard alley-ooped to Chukwu to extend the lead to four. Cameron Indoor went silent.

For Syracuse, Monday offered a glimmer of hope. On the heels of an embarrassing loss to one of the ACC’s weaker teams, the Orange not only hung with the best in the country. They beat them, on the road, providing a postseason resume boost.

“This,” Chukwu said, “is an unbelievable feeling.”

Minutes afterward, after the entire student section had cleared out, the only clear sound in the building came from behind the Syracuse bench. A few custodians began to clean up. Beside loose papers and empty bottles, the players’ families, in unison, stood to cherish this. They’d stayed to cheer, their hopes realized.

Published on January 14, 2019 at 9:48 pm

Contact Matthew: mguti100@syr.edu | @MatthewGut21