SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Seton Hall men’s basketball team shot only 2-for-27 from three-point range as Syracuse defeated the Pirates, 100-76, on Tuesday.

The Orange were 12-for-22 from three-point range.  Andy Rautins was 7-for-10 from behind the three-point arc alone and led the team with 26 points.

Sophomore Jeremy Hazell (Harlem, N.Y.) led the Pirates with 23 points, while junior Robert Mitchell (Brooklyn, N.Y.) scored 22 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for his third double-double of the year.

The Pirates were without head coach Bobby Gonzalez, who was sitting out the game do to a one-game suspension.  Assistant coach Dermon Player assumed the interim head coach role.

Mike Davis (Brooklyn, N.Y.) started the game off with two free throws to give Seton Hall a brief 2-0 lead, but Syracuse then went on a 7-0 run.  Four more free throws by Eugene Harvey, aided by a technical foul assessed to Syracuse’s Rick Jackson, pulled the Pirates to within one, 7-6, with 17:38 left.

Syracuse grabbed a four point lead at 18-14, but the Pirates stormed back again with a steal and uncontested dunk by Hazell.  On the ensuing inbounds pass, Hazell stole the ball again and was fouled while shooting a three-pointer.  However, Hazell, a 79% free throw shooter, made only one of three free throws to pull the Pirates to within one, 18-17.

With the Pirates down one, 20-19, the Orange went on an 8-2 run, highlighted by two three-pointers from Andy Rautins, to give Syracuse a 28-21 lead.  Moments later, with the Orange leading 31-25, Rautins and Eric Devendorf hit back-to-back three-pointers to give Syracuse their largest lead of the game to that point, 37-25, with 6:31 remaining in the half.  After a steal and score by Devendorf, Seton Hall’s Robert Mitchell scored to make it 39-27, but Syracuse answered with six straight points including another three-pointer by Rautins to push the Orange lead to 18 points, 45-27, with 4:22 before halftime.

Syracuse entered the half with a 54-35 lead.

The story of the first half was three-point shooting.  Seton Hall was an abysmal 0-for-11 from behind the three-point arc, while Syracuse was 9-for-14, including five by Rautins and three by Devendorf.  Overall, Seton Hall shot 33.3% from the floor compared to Syracuse’s 57.6%.

Early in the second half, Seton Hall shaved the lead down to 15 points, 59-44, but Syracuse responded with a 9-0 run capped by Rautins’ sixth three-pointer of the evening to push the Orange lead to 68-44 with 14:34 remaining in regulation.

Syracuse went on a 9-2 run capped by a thunderous jam by Arinze Onuaku to give the Orange a nearly insurmountable 31 point lead at 86-55 with 8:09 left.  Seton Hall made one final run, 9-0, to make the score 94-71 with 2:55 remaining.

For the game, Seton Hall shot only 37.5% from the floor, compared to Syracuse’s 56.5%.  The Pirates were out-rebounded 44-to-35, but forced more turnovers, 20-to-16.

Seton Hall was playing without center John Garcia for a fourth straight game.  Garcia has been sidelined since injuring his left knee during the Saint Peter’s game on Dec. 13.

The Pirates will return to action on Saturday, January 3 for the BIG EAST home opener when they host West Virginia at Prudential Center.  Game time is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.