WEST REGIONAL / AT OGDEN, UTAH : Syracuse Pops Wisconsin Green Bay’s Bubble

Adrian Autry refused to panic when Wisconsin-Green Bay rallied against his Syracuse. Instead, he went to work.

Autry scored 16 points, including a key basket and free throw in the final minute, as the 15th-ranked Orangemen beat the Phoenix 64-59 Saturday and advanced to next week’s NCAA West Regional semifinals.

“All our games this year have been close -- we know how to win the close games,” he said. “It was just a hard-fought game. We made the right adjustments and made the shots when we needed to.”

Lawrence Moten led the fourth-seeded Orangemen (23-6) with 17 points, while John Wallace added 16 as Syracuse, which missed last year’s tournament because of NCAA probation, advanced to the Sweet 16.

Coach Jim Boeheim credited the Orangemen’s tight zone defense for frustrating the Phoenix’s deliberate halfcourt offensive style.

Wisconsin-Green Bay made just 39 percent of its shots, while Syracuse shot 49 percent.

“I just felt we didn’t want to play them man-to-man,” Boeheim said. “It wasn’t meant to be a whole game of zone, but it was so effective we couldn’t come out of it.”

Jeff Nordgaard scored 19 points for Wisconsin-Green Bay (27-7), which ended its second NCAA trip as its best. In 1991, the Phoenix lost in the first round.

John Martinez added 13 points for the 12th-seeded Phoenix, who upset California on Thursday.

“We can’t grind zones the way we can man-to-man,” Wisconsin-Green Bay coach Dick Bennett said. “Had they been playing man in the second half, I think we could’ve gotten that thing ... nailed them and gotten the right people open.”

Syracuse, which now goes on to Los Angeles next week, had led by 14 points with 15 minutes to play.

Martinez’s 3-pointer began a 16-6 run and the Phoenix closed to 52-48. Jeremy Ludvigson’s free throws and, with 3:01 remaining, a driving layup cut the lead to 58-57. But the rally stalled.

Lucious Jackson made the first of two free throws, and Otis Hill rebounded the miss, giving the Orangemen possession with 1:28 left. As the game entered its final minute, Autry pulled up for an eight-foot jumper to re-establish Syracuse’s lead at 61-57.

Ben Berlowski made two free throws with 17 seconds left, leaving Wisconsin-Green Bay down by three points. But Autry made the second of two free throws a second later to wrap it up.

The Phoenix, getting two early 3-pointers from Martinez, led 12-7 seven minutes into the game. But the Orangemen soon got their fast break going and pulled away.

Moten’s two layups -- one off his own steal, the other off a blocked shot -- keyed a 16-3 run that gave Syracuse a 23-15 lead 5:35 before halftime.

A 10-2 spurt, capped by Autry’s 20-footer, put Syracuse ahead by 16 points, but Nordgaard’s jumper and a 3-pointer in the final minute trimmed the halftime deficit to 37-26.