On Easter Sunday, the 10th-seeded Syracuse Orange upset No. 1 seed Virginia in the NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional Final by the score of 68-62 to advance to their second Final Four in four years. It is also the school’s fifth appearance under coach Jim Boeheim.
The Orange were down 36-21 heading into halftime, but a second-half surge in the last 10 minutes of the game proved to be too much for Virginia. In addition to a suffocating full court press, freshman Malachi Richardson scored 21 of his 23 points in the second half after going 0-5 in the first half of play. Syracuse outscored the Cavaliers 47-27 in the second half en route to the victory that Boeheim called “one of the best (comebacks) I’ve coached (with) any team I’ve had.”
After the game’s conclusion, Orange players from years past made their presence known on social media to praise the team’s win.
Carmelo Anthony, one of Syracuse’s most beloved alumni after leading the Orange to their only National Championship in 2003, took to his public Snapchat account to make his happiness known:
