Story and Videos by Michael Silver
Photo courtesy suathletics.com
Photo courtesy suathletics.com
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SYRACUSE – For the third straight game it came down to the
wire for the Syracuse Orange men’s basketball team. Three was not the magic
number this time however, as the No. 1 team in the nation lost its first game
of the season. Boston College (7-19, 3-10) stunned the Carrier Dome crowd and
walked away winners in overtime, 62-59.
After a buzzer-beater win against Pittsburgh and a late
possession layup to pull out another victory last week, the Orange men found
themselves in a hole once again, but this time could not find the answer.
“We lost our defense, we allowed them to shoot threes,” Coach Jim Boeheim said.
Discussing the offensive woes seen over the last few weeks, the SU coach was blunt.
“We’re not putting the ball in the basket…we have to score
more, we’re not going to win games shooting 32 percent. It’s really simple, it’s not
complicated.”
The Eagles combined to make 11 three pointers on 22 tries,
while the Orange long ball was dreadful, missing the mark 10 out of 12 times.
Tyler Ennis did his best to keep his team’s perfect record
intact but knew a letdown was inevitable.
“We’ve been in a lot of those [close] games, and you want to
expect to win them all but its not realistic that you’re going to pull out a
bunch of games that come down to the last five minutes.”
Ennis had 14 points, eight rebounds and six assists but a late,
uncharacteristic, turnover forced SU to intentionally foul and eventually to lose.
Trevor Cooney who has been on a cold streak of late, was
shut down by the BC defense. He scored 5 points on 2 for 8 shooting, including
1 for 6 from downtown.
Asked if he was disappointed in the school record,
25-game win streak coming to an end, Cooney was forthright.
“It’s disappointing," he said. "I’m not looking at the streak. I’m looking
at the loss, no one likes to lose.”
CJ Fair had a rough start to the game but continued to
battle on the boards and get opportunities. He finished with a double-double,
20 points and 11 rebounds but shot poorly from the field, going 7 for 23.
“I thought I could have been more efficient…a lot of my
shots I thought were going in. My touch was a little off,” Fair said.
Syracuse (25-1, 12-1) now heads on the road for its next three games. The first, a rematch with Duke Saturday night after their instant classic earlier in the month.
Slow start
offensively
Fair started one for six and the Orange could not score the
first four minutes of play, while the Eagles equally struggled, leading early,
4-0. Once the senior forward got into the scoring column he kept shooting,
going 4-12 in the first 20 minutes. Jerami Grant showed his explosiveness in
the paint with a couple of 3-point plays and tallied seven points. He finished
with 11 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals. BC’s Lonnie Jackson went 2
for 3 from deep to pace his squad with six points before recess.
Second half pace
picks up
Whatever head coach Jim Boeheim said during intermission
evidently sparked his players. Cooney hit a three ball and Fair got an easy lay up to cap
a 12-0 run from the first half. It forced BC's Coach Steve Donahue into a
quick timeout.
His motivational speech seemed to pay off just the same, as the
Eagles sharpshooters Joe Rahon, Eddie Odio and Oliver Hanlan started making
shots from the outside and tied the game at 41 with eight minutes to play. With
the scored tied at 50, Syracuse had the ball on the last possession. Rakeem
Christmas took an off balance shot in the paint, and it rolled off the rim
forcing overtime.
Bonus Ball
Oliver Hanlan hit a quick three to start. Patrick Heckmann next nailed a corner three, and Christmas responded with
a pair of free throws making it 56-54 BC. Tyler Ennis went coast to coast after a steal for a lay up
to tie things up just under two minutes to play. He split a pair of free throws
to give the Orange a brief one point lead, but Heckmann’s cut to the basket and
lay up of his own gave BC the lead once more.
Ennis would turn the ball over on
the next possession in traffic. SU then fouled Lonnie Jackson, two trips to the
charity stripe and four points later the Orange found themselves down three. A
last second heave by Cooney was short as the horn sounded to the dismay of 26,716
fans in attendance.
Throwback night at
the Carrier Dome
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| Photo (c) Nike, Inc. |
Nike unveiled old school uniforms with a new school twist
for seven NCAA teams in 2014. Hailed as the hyper elite dominance uniforms,
Syracuse donned orange jerseys with cursive script on the chest and blue shorts
with a block “S” on its side.
A Nike press release titled ‘Respect the Past, Represent the
Future: Syracuse University Basketball,’ explained in detail its new aesthetic
design.
“The iconic cursive script ‘Syracuse’ across the jersey
chest debuted in 1984 with the arrival of Dwayne “Pearl” Washington; both
symbolized the dawn of a new era. The script is an indelible trademark of
SU hoops that excites alumni and fans to this day, 30 years since its debut.
The new navy blue hyper elite shorts remix past with future and feature trim
details reminiscent of the 2002-03 uniform shorts worn by SU’s National
Championship team.”
Game Notes
-25 game win streak was the longest ever for Syracuse basketball.
-First home loss to an unranked opponent since 1/25/11 vs. Seton Hall. A 46 game streak snapped.
-First regular season loss to an unranked opponent since 2/13/13 at UConn.
Jim Boeheim Postgame Press Conference
Syracuse Player Postgame Interviews
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