ATLANTIC CITY, NJ (AP) -- Kris Joseph scored 22 points and No. 9 Syracuse held off hard-charging Michigan 53-50 on Friday night to advance to the Legends Classic championship game.
The Orange (5-0) will play Georgia Tech on Saturday night. The Yellow Jackets beat UTEP 71-61 in the first game.
Scoop Jardine hit the go-ahead 3-pointer late in the game and scored 11 points. Rick Jackson had 10 points and 12 rebounds for Syracuse.
Jordan Morgan and Stu Douglass both scored 11 points for the Wolverines (3-1).
The Wolverines led at halftime and put themselves in position late to pull off the upset after Douglass' 3-pointer made it 45-44. They just couldn't finish what would have been a nice early season win and big-time confidence booster.
Michigan shot only 29 percent from the floor in the second half.
The Wolverines wore down late in the game against Syracuse's zone and seemed flustered on several possessions. The Wolverines, who won only 15 games last season, couldn't finish off the upset.
Douglass sank a 3 and Michigan led 45-44 with 5:53 left. His basket actually put Orange fans on their feet - they made up about 80 percent of the nearly 7,000 crowd - to cheer on their team.
With chants of "Let's go Orange!" echoing throughout Boardwalk Hall, Jardine buried a 3 to make it 47-45. On the next possession, the Wolverines couldn't find an open look and were called for a shot clock violation.
Joseph took advantage of the turnover and sank a jumper that finally gave the Orange some breathing room.
It almost wasn't enough.
Tim Hardaway Jr. slipped inside and tossed up an off-balance shot that made it 51-48 going into a timeout. Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim stomped out to midcourt to yell at forward Rick Jackson. Hardaway, who scored eight points, put his dad in a tough spot in Saturday's loser's bracket.
Tim Hardaway watched both games of the doubleheader in support of his son and his former school, UTEP.
"That is weird having my kid here and UTEP here," Hardaway said before Michigan tipped. "If they win and play together, I'm going to become neutral. I'm going to have some black on or some red on."
Instead, both were losers.
Joseph sparked the Orange hit a 3 during a 9-0 run early in the second half that rallied them to a 38-33 lead.
Hardaway's 3 ended the run and he sent the game into a timeout with a thunderous dunk that pulled the Wolverines within two.
Michigan hit eight 3s in the first half and led 31-29.
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