Kris Joseph scored 17 points Monday, and No. 3 Syracuse recovered from its first loss of the season by beating Cincinnati 60-53, giving coach Jim Boeheim a notable career win. The Orange (21-1, 8-1 Big East) used a late 12-2 run to pull away from the Bearcats (15-6, 5-3), who tried to use the energy of their first home sellout to get a signature win. Instead, Boeheim came away with career victory No. 877, moving him ahead of Adolph Rupp into sole possession of fourth place on the Division I coaching list. Syracuse was coming off a 67-58 loss at Notre Dame Saturday that ended the best start in school history and cost the Orange their No. 1 ranking. Joseph had three driving baskets during the 12-2 run midway through the second half. Cashmere Wright had 17 points for Cincinnati, which suffered its first back-to-back losses of the season. A little old-fashioned zone defense made the difference. Cincinnati's 53 points matched its season low against Xavier. The Bearcats, who wore throwback uniforms for their biggest home game of the season. Most of the 13,176 fans dressed in white, and the coaches wore white button-down shirts without jackets. Syracuse's late spurt sent them to the exits before the buzzer. The Orange was missing 7-foot center Fab Melo for the second straight game. Melo is their top rebounder and shot blocker. The school hasn't disclosed the reason for his absence. Syracuse leads the Big East with 78.9 points per game and 48 percent shooting, fueled by fastbreak layups off turnovers. No. 5 Kansas 64, Texas A&M 54: Thomas Robinson carried No. 5 Kansas when things looked bleak, scoring 16 of his 18 points in the second half and leading the Jayhawks to win over scrappy Texas A&M. Tyshawn Taylor added 17 points in another solid performance, and Kansas (17-3, 7-0 Big 12) used a big surge through the middle of the second half to wrap up its 10th consecutive victory and extend its winning streak at Allen Fieldhouse to 17 in a row. Kansas is 18-1 against Texas A&M (11-8, 2-5), the lone loss coming in February 2007. Elston Turner had a career-high 24 points for the Aggies. David Loubeau added 15 points. While Kansas remains the lone unbeaten team in conference play, Texas A&M has lost seven of its last 10 games and is already in danger of playing itself out of the NCAA tournament.
