Kayl Petersen and the Hokies fought back from a double-digit deficit but couldn't get over the hump vs. Syracuse. (Jon Fleming)

Defensive struggles doomed the Hokies on Thursday night in their 93-87 loss to Syracuse.

“This is a story about defense,” Virginia Tech head coach Megan Duffy said. “… I thought our ability to adjust to their 3-point shooting was not great and that’s something I have to take responsibility for — to figure out a way to not lose a couple of their shooters.”

Tech (15-8, 6-6 ACC) did several things right, including shooting 51 percent, dishing out 24 assists to just 12 turnovers and finishing plus-14 on the glass. It also rallied to tie the game after trailing by 15 points. However, it couldn’t contain the Orange (9-13, 3-8) in one of the best shooting performances ever by an opponent in Blacksburg.

Syracuse converted 60.3 percent of its field goals (38-of-63), the fourth-best mark in Cassell Coliseum’s history. It was the first time an opponent shot 60 percent or better against the Hokies since Florida State was 60.3 percent in Tallahassee on Jan. 14, 2018.

“I think they were taking what we were giving them,” Tech guard Carleigh Wenzel said. “I think we made it tougher on ourselves than they made it on us.”

The Orange was balanced, too. It made 26 of its 42 2-point attempts (62%) and scored 40 points in the paint. At the same time, it was 12-of-21 (57%) from behind the arc. It was the first time an opponent made 12 or more treys against the Hokies since Florida Gulf Coast hit 15 in the 2022 NCAA Tournament.

Sophie Burrows was the driving force. She knocked down eight triples, five of which came in the first half, on 12 attempts and finished with a game-high 28 points. The sophomore, who entered the day averaging 10.6 points per game, set the record for most 3-pointers by an opponent in Cassell and tied Maryland’s Kristi Toliver for the most by any foe vs. Tech.

“We let [her] just get anything she wanted basically,” Hokies forward Carys Baker said. “… We shouldn’t have let [her] get as hot as she did, and obviously, she had herself a day, which is going to happen, but we have to figure out ways to stop that earlier when we see that it’s happening.”

Sophie Burrows made the Hokies pay by knocking down eight 3-pointers on 12 attempts. (Jon Fleming)

Only one of those threes came in the fourth quarter, but it was a big one. Over the first 13 minutes of the second half, the Hokies outscored the Orange 40-28 and knotted things back up at 77 with 6:53 remaining. However, a basket from Kyra Wood put Syracuse back in front before Burrows nailed a three that pushed her team away for good.

Tech tried its best to pull back level, but the Orange answered at each turn. Wood had two crucial layups, Dominique Camp hit a jumper and Angelica Velez’s triple with 60 seconds on the clock iced things.

“It just became contagious,” Duffy said. “It almost felt like they were shooting it in the ocean.”

The Hokies fell behind early in a tough first half without starting forward Rose Micheaux. The senior is averaging 12.3 points and 8.2 rebounds per game this year. Duffy said she is out with an injury and is day-to-day.

As a result, freshman Kayl Petersen started at the five. She posted eight points, four rebounds and a career-high three assists, though Syracuse attacked her well. She picked up her second personal foul 24 seconds into the second quarter.

Ramiya White filled in off the bench and added two rebounds and two assists, though Duffy later found some success with a smaller lineup that featured Baker at the five.

Still, Tech looked disjointed defensively in that first half and allowed the Orange to find a groove. A 9-0 Syracuse run over three minutes towards the end of the first quarter widened the lead, and a 6-0 run to start the second period pushed the margin to double digits.

That’s when Burrows heated up. She knocked down three 3-pointers in less than three minutes and spearheaded an 11-of-15 period for the visitors. At the break, Tech trailed 49-37.

The Hokies did a good job of climbing out of the hole, though. They blitzed Syracuse in the next 4:07 to the tune of 12-6 and forced Felisha Legette-Jack to call timeout. The Orange kept them at bay through the end of the third — it was 70-65 — before back-to-back threes from Matilda Ekh and Baker set the table for four straight points from Petersen that tied things at 77.

“I thought we played some great basketball in that stretch in the third quarter,” Duffy said. Just confident in transition, we shared it, we moved it. Even [though] a couple shots didn’t go in, I thought it was great.”

Carleigh Wenzel and the Hokies fought their way back in the game but weren't good enough in the final few minutes. (Jon Fleming)

Yet, Tech never got over the final hump. Even without Micheaux, it did a good job on the glass against the top offensive rebounding team in the ACC and won that battle 39-25. The go-ahead bucket from Wood was off an extra opportunity, though. (It was Tech’s first loss with a plus-14 margin on the boards since Jan. 30, 2020, at Syracuse.)

The Hokies couldn’t capitalize on their offensive chances either. They were just 5-of-14 from the field with three turnovers over the final seven minutes after tying things up.

“I thought a little bit down the stretch we bobbled a couple passes, just got a jump ball one time,” Duffy said. “I thought that hurt us when we could have kept that momentum going and maybe taken the lead after that. We were down three and had a chance and just a couple mistakes.”

Tech had three players score 20-plus points in a loss for the first time since Feb. 18, 1986, at Radford. Baker had a career-high 24 points on 11-of-24 shooting while hauling in nine rebounds. Wenzel matched her 24 points (10-of-18) while dropping 10 assists for her second double-double of the year. Lani White also added 20 points (8-of-11). That trio combined for 78 percent of the team’s production and was a combined 29-of-53 (54.7%).

Ekh was also solid had nine points and seven boards. Offense wasn’t really a problem, though. The Hokies finished 36-of-70 (51.4%), boosted by the sharp 12-of-15 third quarter that allowed them to get back into the game.

In the end, it came down to defense, and they weren’t good enough in that area.

“I’d say [it was] little things,” Wenzel said. “Just finding people earlier in transition, just understanding who’s hot and who’s not. We knew, like it was no secret, that Burrows was hot, and I think we just need to do a better job of finding her. … Just small things that … when we fix them, we’re going to be pretty dominant on the defensive end.”

The result doesn’t make or break Tech’s résumé, though it now has its first Quadrant 4 loss, according to the NET rankings. It had been a spotless 10-0 in that category so far this year and had impressed with wins over solid teams in Georgia Tech and Louisville. However, with six regular-season games remaining, it might need another big-time win at North Carolina or vs. Cal to feel confident about its postseason chances. Sunday’s Commonwealth Clash rematch in Charlottesville has heavy implications.

Box Score: Syracuse 93, Virginia Tech 87