Morrow’s 27 points lead Syracuse past Ohio State

Associated Press

SYRACUSE, N.Y.

Quentin Hillsman furrowed his brow as he scanned the Carrier Dome after the biggest win in his five seasons as head coach of the Syracuse women.

“We didn’t even get a vote in the AP poll,” Hillsman said with a big shrug — and a smile to match.

That’s most likely going to change come Monday.

Erica Morrow scored a season-high 27 points, Tasha Harris hit a key 3-pointer late and inbounded to Iasia Hemingway for an important layup in the final minute, and Syracuse upset No. 6 Ohio State 75-66 on Saturday.

Syracuse (8-0) has won 36 straight nonconference home games, and none was bigger than this one. A victory nearly 15 years ago over perennial powerhouse Connecticut remains the Orange’s signature triumph, but this one is a close second.

“That’s a great, great performance by our team,” Hillsman said. “The kids just played hard. It’s really good for us. I’m proud of them. We never talked about losing this game.”

Ohio State (7-1), bidding for its second straight 8-0 start under coach Jim Foster, lost to Syracuse for the first time in 10 meetings.

“I knew they had a great team,” said Morrow, a senior guard who made four 3s in nearly matching her career high of 29. “They have great post play and great guards. I knew I was going to have to step up big for my team. My team was telling me, ’Shoot the ball, shoot the ball, shoot the ball.’ That’s the key.”

Jantel Lavender led Ohio State with 26 points on 10 of 16 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds, while Samantha Prahalis had 17 points and eight assists, and Brittany Johnson had 13 points.

Syracuse beat then-No. 2 UConn 62-59 in January 1996 at Manley Field House for the program’s first-ever win over a ranked opponent. That UConn team had won 40 consecutive Big East regular-season and tournament games and featured stars Nykesha Sales and Jennifer Rizzotti.

Leading 50-42 with 12:35 left, Syracuse seemed ready to cave against Ohio State when Prahalis, Tayler Hill and Johnson hit 3-pointers in succession to pull the Buckeyes to 54-51 with 10:29 left.

But every time the Buckeyes moved closer, the Orange held them at bay. Morrow’s basket from the right wing put Syracuse up 61-56 with 6:56 left, but six straight points from Lavender got the Buckeyes within 63-62.