Charlottesville, Va. ― Syracuse lost to Virginia, 72-59, here at the John Paul Jones Arena, and Kiyan Anthony watched the entire game from the bench.
It was the first time all season Anthony did not play a single minute in a game. He had appeared in each of the Orange’s first 23 games, averaging 19.3 minutes per game.
Anthony did not appear to be injured. He had participated in the team’s pregame warmups and was not listed on the ACC’s availability report either Friday or Saturday.
After the game, SU coach Adrian Autry said the decision to not play Anthony was a coaching decision.
“No injury concerns,” Autry said. ”It was just my decision. This is a physical team, an experienced team. It was just my decision. No injuries or anything like that.”
Anthony came into Saturday with an 8.9 scoring average; however his offensive efficiency numbers were the lowest on the team among SU’s rotation players, according to KenPom.com.
A 6-foot-5 wing, Anthony is shooting 41% from the field this season, but he’s just 14-for-60 (23%) from 3-point range.
“It’s no narratives about any of this stuff,” Autry said. ”I just made the decision. It was my decision that I made today.”
Syracuse (13-11, 4-7 ACC) will next play on Tuesday when it hosts California.
