The start couldn’t have been much better.

The middle portion didn’t go so well.

The end is what Wake Forest can build on.

The Deacons closed out an 81-71 win at Syracuse on Tuesday, closing out 2024 with a win in which they led by 16 early and trailed by as much as six in the second half.

“Down the stretch we executed well,” coach Steve Forbes said via news release. “Offensively, we made free throws. Any time that you come in here and win, it’s a great win. I have a lot of respect for Syracuse’s program and the history of it.”

It’s the first time Wake Forest has won at Syracuse in seven tries.

Wake Forest (10-4, 2-1 ACC) rode a 23-point game from Hunter Sallis, 14 of those coming in the second half. When the Deacons needed buckets late, it was mostly the senior guard doing the damage.

Four other Deacons scored in double figures, with 14 coming from Cameron Hildreth. He nailed a step-back 3-pointer later to take a three-point lead to six; the senior was 2-for-2 on 3s, and Wake Forest was 9-for-19 behind the arc.

Wake Forest led 17-2 after five minutes. That was the Deacons’ best stretch of the season, getting six points from Ty-Laur Johnson in his first start of the season. Johnson finished with 11 points, as did Tre’Von Spillers, who also had 10 rebounds.

Freshman Juke Harris scored 10 points, providing some much-needed juice off the bench. He had scored a combined two points in Wake’s last two games.

In the first five minutes of the second half, Hildreth, Johnson and Efton Reid III all picked up their fourth fouls. So, the Deacons played most of the second without their services.

After Syracuse (6-7, 0-2) stretched its lead to six in the second half, Wake’s answer came in the form of 3s by Sallis and Parker Friedrichsen on consecutive possessions. Harris made a corner 3 a couple of minutes later to put Wake Forest up 53-51, and the Deacons led for the last 10½ minutes.

Wake Forest made 10 free throws in the last two minutes, four of them by Reid, to close out the Orange.

Syracuse was led by 16 points apiece by Jaquan Carlos and Lucas Taylor, the former Wake Forest guard (from 2021-23). Kyle Cuffe Jr. scored 14 points.