Junior forward James Southerland scored 14 of his team- and collegiate-best 19 points in the first half Tuesday to help the Syracuse University men's basketball program rout the University at Albany, 98-74, in the East Regional final of the NIT Tipoff Tournament held at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse. The Orange (3-0), ranked No. 5 in both the AP and USA Today/ESPN Coaches polls, will face Virginia Tech, who defeated Florida International University, 78-63, Tuesday, in the semifinal round, which will be played at Madison Square Garden, Nov. 23.
SU sophomore center Baye Moussa Keita collected a collegiate-best 14 points, while the Orange bench outscored the Great Danes bench, 49-11. Senior forward Kris Joseph also netted a team-best 19 points, while Albany's junior guard Gerardo Suero netted a game-best 31 points.
So far, SU is averaging 89.3 points per game, while outscoring its opponents by a margin of 28.3 points.
The Syracuse basketball schedule features the Orange hosting Colgate University, Nov. 19.