Syracuse 57, Maryland 55

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Syracuse guard Tyler Ennis scored 20 points and forward C.J. Fair added 17 as the fourth-ranked Orange beat Maryland 57-55 Monday to get back to its winning ways.

Syracuse (26-2, 13-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) lost its previous two games, including a controversial ending Saturday at Duke.

Maryland (15-13, 7-8) was paced by guard Seth Allen, who scored 22 points but missed a running 3-point shot at the buzzer.

Terrapins guard Dez Wells (15 points) hit two free throws with 54.7 seconds to cut Syracuse’s lead to 56-54. The Orange turned the ball over, and Maryland forward Jake Layman hit one free throw to make it 56-55 with 47.7 seconds left.

The Orange called time with 27.6 seconds left, and Fair missed a shot with 15 seconds to go. Maryland guard Nick Faust missed on a drive to the basket with about seven seconds left as the Terrapins screamed for a foul.

Syracuse got the rebound, and guard Trevor Cooney was fouled with four seconds remaining. Maryland called a timeout, and then Cooney, on a one-and-one at the line, made the first and missed the second to make it 57-55.

The Terrapins got the rebound and called time with 3.5 seconds left, and then Allen drove before missing the final shot.

Maryland trailed by eight points at halftime. Allen was 4-for-5 from the field, but the rest of the team was 3-for-18 prior to intermission.

Fair gave the Orange an 18-8 lead midway through the first half with a 15-footer from the left foul line extended.

The Terrapins cut the lead to 20-17 on a 3-pointer by Allen, but Syracuse Ennis hit a 3-pointer just before the buzzer to give the Orange a 32-24 lead at intermission. Allen scored 12 first-half points, making four of five 3-pointers, while Fair had 10 points in 15 minutes.

Fair had picked up his third foul as he pushed off on the offensive end with 4:55 left in the first half and headed to the bench. However, Maryland committed 12 first-half turnovers and made just two 2-point field goals (and five 3-pointers) in the first half.

“I’m really upset. We have to play better,” Terrapins coach Mark Turgeon told the Maryland radio network at halftime.

No. 4 Syracuse was coming off a 66-60 loss at Duke. In that game, Orange coach Jim Boeheim was ejected with 10.4 seconds left as he protested a call on a drive to the basket by Fair. The Orange also lost at home to Boston College on Wednesday.

It was the first time Syracuse played at the Comcast Center and the first and last time the teams will meet as ACC foes in regular-season action. Maryland is set to move to the Big Ten.

NOTES: Syracuse returns to action Saturday at first-place Virginia. Maryland plays Sunday at Clemson. … While the Orange played two games in the previous six days, Maryland had not played since winning at home against Wake Forest on Feb. 18. … Two of the top players for Syracuse are from Maryland: F Jerami Grant, who went to nearby DeMatha Catholic High in Hyattsville; and F C.J. Fair, who is from Baltimore. … The game drew a sellout crowd of 17,950 fans to the Comcast Center.