Syracuse 85, Seton Hall 73

3/5/2008 8:31 PM

By TOM CANAVAN
AP Sports Writer

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) -Donte Greene had 19 points and 13 rebounds and Syracuse snapped a season-high three-game losing streak with an 85-73 victory over Seton Hall on Wednesday night in a game in which the Orangemen lost two points 15 minutes after the first half ended.

Arinze Onuaku added 17 points and 14 rebounds before fouling out and Kristof Ongenaet had 10 points and 11 rebounds as Syracuse (18-12, 8-9 Big East) won for only the second time in six games. Jonny Flynn added 16 points and Paul Harris hit two late baskets to put the game away.

The Orangemen need a big finish in the final game of the regular season and a good run in the conference tournament to avoid missing the NCAA tournament for the second straight year, something the school has not done since 1981-82.

Brian Laing scored 17 of his 20 points in the second half and Jamar Nutter added 15 for Seton Hall (17-13, 7-10). Jeremy Hazell added 14 points for the Pirates, who were outrebounded 54-29.

The most memorable part of the game was the start of the second half and left Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim shaking his head.

A late run that Greene started with consecutive 3-pointers gave Syracuse what seemed to be a 48-31 halftime lead. The last two points came when Scoop Jardine hit 2 of 3 free throws with less than a second to play.

Jardine had picked up a loose ball in the closing seconds, dribbled down the court and tossed up a shot just before the buzzer. Tim Higgins called a foul.

After reviewing the videotape, the officials decided the shot came before the buzzer and was outside the 3-point ring.

When the officials came on the floor for the second half, Higgins and fellow officials Bryan Kersey and Brian O'Connell watched the tape again and noticed the clock had stopped momentarily with about four seconds remaining. They ruled that Jardine never would have gotten his shot off and deducted two points, determining the error was correctable.

For most of the second half, the change seemed insignificant as Syracuse led by double figures.

However, the Orangemen went cold with about six minutes to play and Laing scored all 10 points in a 10-2 run that got Seton Hall to within 76-69 with 3:35 to go.

Harris, who finished with 14 points, hit a jumper in the lane and drove for a layup with 1:50 to play for an 80-69 lead that iced the game.