Kris Joseph scored 12 of his game-high 18 points after halftime as No. 5 Syracuse overcame an eight-point second-half deficit to defeat Stanford 69-63 on Friday in the championship game of the NIT Season Tip-Off at Madison Square Garden.

Scoop Jardine added 14 points for the Orange (6-0), who narrowly avoided becoming the second Top 5-ranked Big East team to go down on Friday. Central Florida upset No. 4 Connecticut earlier in the day.

Aaron Bright had 13 points to lead the Cardinal (5-1), who fell to 12-27 all-time against teams from the Big East.

It was a back-and-forth game that featured a number of ties and lead changes until Stanford stretched its lead to 55-47 on a Bright 3-pointer from the wing with 6:47 left.

But Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim called timeout to pull his team out of its standard 2-3 zone, instead deciding to amp up the pressure with a full-court press.

The Orange responded with a 16-5 spurt, taking a 63-60 lead with 2:08 left on back-to-back buckets by Joseph and Dion Waiters.

Trailing 66-63 with less than 30 seconds left, the Cardinal squandered their final opportunity to tie the game by turning the ball over.