San Jose, CA

Brandon Triche tallied 20 points and CJ Fair had 13 as fourth-seeded Syracuse cruised to an easy 81-34 triumph over No. 13 Montana Thursday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at HP Pavilion.

The win was the Orange's most lopsided since beating Brown, 101-52, in the first round in 1986. It came hours after No. 5 VCU defeated Akron by 46 points.

With the victory, Syracuse barged into the next round against 12th seed California, which defeated UNLV, 64-61.

The victory also improved Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim's all-time record to 25-5 in NCAA Tournament opening-round games.

Triche went 5-for-6 from the field and 8-for-10 from the charity stripe, moving him to 19th place on the SU all-time scoring list, passing Jason Hart and Dennis DuVal.

DaJuan Coleman had 12 while Rakeem Christmas and James Southerland scored nine points each for the Orange (27-9).

Four players -- Spencer Coleman, Kareem Jamar, Jordan Gregory and Jake Wiley - scored five points apiece for the Grizzlies (25-7), who shot just 11-for-54 from the field for 20 percent.

The Orange started the contest with a 20-4 run, behind eight points from Fair and four from Southerland, and never looked back from there.

The Orange went to the locker room ahead by 23 points, 38-15, which marks the fewest first-half points Syracuse has allowed an opponent all season.

Helped out by a 27-5 run in the second half, the Orange advantage soared to as many as 42 points.

Then, Coleman helped Syracuse taste its biggest lead of the game at 48 points after converting a slam dunk with 5:30 remaining in the game.

Overall, the Orange shot 27-for-52 for 51.9 percent and outclassed the Grizzlies in rebounds (40-29), assists (21-5) and steals (12-5).

Brandon Triche scored 20 points, C.J. Fair added 13 and the fourth-seeded Orange shut down No. 13 seed Montana with their zone defense in a 81-34 victory in the second round of the NCAA tournament on Thursday night

Montana vs. Syracuse Highlights

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Brandon Triche Leads Syracuse to Easy Win over Montana