Syracuse trailed by as many as 15 points, but finished its third game in three days without its star, C.J. Fair, and never wavered. Facing a perceived lesser opponent in Carleton University, SU battled back to force overtime and eventually beat Carleton 69-65 at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa on Friday.

Tyler Ennis, the freshman guard playing in his native Canada, was once again the star for Syracuse. He scored 15 points in 44 minutes to lift the Orange out of a 32-23 halftime deficit and to the four-point victory over the Canadian national champions.

When he was on the court, though, Fair was in his usual role as the star. The forward sat out Thursday’s win over Bishop’s University after bruising his leg on Wednesday. He led Syracuse with seven points in the first half before leaving the game with seven minutes remaining in the second half after bruising the leg again.

The Ravens were in command for much of the game. They vaulted out to a 7-0 lead before taking the nine-point edge into the break. Midway through the second half, Carleton’s lead ballooned to 47-32, but a 14-0 run put the Orange right back in it.

The Ravens shot back with five unanswered points, but a mid-range jumper by Trevor Cooney put SU on top for the first time, 56-54, with just under four minutes left. Another Carleton 3-pointer – the Ravens attempted 40 and made 10 – gave them the lead as the game ultimately headed to overtime tied at 59.

Syracuse scored five of the first seven points in overtime, but Carleton answered to slice the Orange’s lead to 66-65. Forward Jerami Grant then sunk a pair of free throws to ice SU’s third victory in three days of its Canadian tour.

Syracuse will conclude its trip north of the border on Saturday at 7 p.m. against University of Ottawa. The Orange will be without Fair, who head coach Jim Boeheim said will not play.

Before the close call with the Ravens, the Orange had notched a pair of wins of 40 or more points against McGill University and Bishop’s University.

Published on August 23, 2013 at 10:19 pm

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