CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim knew it was going to happen. Syracuse players saw it coming, too. The 41-year head coach doesn’t always think numbers tell the story of his team, but they cast an ominous shadow before the Orange faced its toughest test yet.

North Carolina was the best offensive rebounding team in the country heading into Monday night, securing 42.3 percent of its misses, according to Kenpom.com. Syracuse was one of the worst in the nation on the defensive glass, ranking 301st out of 351 teams, allowing opponents to corral 33.2 percent of their missed shots.

There was little Syracuse could do, if anything, to make sure those numbers didn’t tell the story of this game. But they did, almost to a tee, as the Orange (11-8, 3-3 Atlantic Coast) missed out on its first win away from the Carrier Dome this season in an 85-68 loss to the No. 9 Tar Heels (17-3, 5-1) in the Dean Smith Center in front of 20,588 on Monday night.

North Carolina grabbed 44 rebounds, the most by a Syracuse opponent this season. The Orange only secured 24 and gave up 18 on the offensive glass, the second-most it has allowed through 18 games. That, in a nutshell, is how SU failed to add its first signature win to an NCAA Tournament resume in desperate need of something, anything of note.

“We know we’re gonna get beat on the boards going in here,” Boeheim said, “but it was a little bit too much for us to overcome.”

Before Syracuse could even reach the first media timeout, UNC grabbed six boards — three on each end — and jumped out to a 9-2 lead while SU didn’t have a single rebound. Like clockwork, a member of the Tar Heels’ menacing front line of Kennedy Meeks, Isaiah Hicks and Justin Jackson would corral an offensive board and put it back with ease. In the first half, all 12 of North Carolina’s second-chance points came immediately after an offensive rebound.

The Orange was able to trim an early 10-point deficit to three at 20-17, but Syracuse could only find so many answers for a team first in the country with over 46 rebounds per game and a frontcourt that scored 32 of its team’s 42 first-half points. The result was a 12-point halftime lead for the hosts and a momentum shift entirely in the Tar Heels’ favor right before the break.

“They’re definitely very physical, especially when they get inside position,” Syracuse forward Tyler Roberson said. “… We just have to do a better job of keeping them off the glass. … That was more than I think anybody should get against us.”

After trimming a 15-point deficit to three on the heels of a 12-0 run at the beginning of the second half, Syracuse found itself right in a game that looked out of reach just minutes before. But the visitors were swiftly reminded of why North Carolina is a top-10 team, and why it has now beat the Orange in five straight games.

SU only trailed by six after back-to-back mid-range jumpers by Tyler Lydon, but Meeks easily tipped in a missed 3 from Jackson. Two North Carolina possessions later, Lydon dropped a rebound in his grasp and Luke Maye hit a mid-range jumper seconds after. That’s essentially how this one went for Syracuse, opportunities to capitalize slipping out of its grasp and North Carolina making SU pay with ease.

“We knew what we were going to get tonight,” Syracuse shooting guard Tyus Battle said. “We knew what North Carolina does. They like to live on the boards.”

The Orange couldn’t trim its deficit lower than seven in the final 13:20, and just like Syracuse’s season-ending loss to UNC in the Final Four, the game spiraled out of reach in the latter part of the second half. After that game, SU walked off the court with no season left.

Following this one, Syracuse trailed into the tunnel with plenty of games remaining, even if it feels like time is quickly running out.

Published on January 16, 2017 at 9:00 pm

Contact Matt: mcschnei@syr.edu | @matt_schneidman