St. John’s Rains Three-pointers at Dome, Winning over Syracuse

Story and Photos by Thomas Zhou
Syracuse, N.Y-

Michael Gbinije’s step-back jumper from behind the free-throw line gave Syracuse a 53-52 lead over St. John’s, with 6:49 left in the game. Free throws by Chris McCullough and Rakeem Christmas made it 55-52.

For the rest of the game, St. John’s used a 17-2 run to defeat the Orange on Saturday evening at the Carrier Dome. The Syracuse (5-3) loss to St. John’s (6-1), ended its 55-game home winning streak against non-conference teams.

In the game, Syracuse made two more field goals and had a higher shooting percentage (39.3) than St. John’s (37.7). The Orange had two more rebounds, five more assists and scored 20 more points in the paint. The reasons for that 12-point loss lie behind the arc and at the free throw line.

During that 17-2 run, St. John’s guard Phil Greene IV made three 3-pointers and the Orange's Ron Patterson missed two. Greene and his teammate D’Angelo Harrison each made four 3-pointers in the game. Patterson shot 1-of-7 from behind the arc.

“They were good shots,” Patterson said. “Open look, they did not fall.”

The Red Storm went 9-of-16 from behind the arc while the Orange 3-of-22. Junior guard Trevor Cooney, who made four of his nine three-point attempts against Michigan, missed all four 3-point shots this game and finished with two points. Michael Gbinije, Kaleb Joseph, and Patterson made one 3-pointer apiece.

“We got a lot of good looks and did not make them,” head coach Jim Boeheim said. “…You can’t win if you don’t make some shots in those situations.”

“We are going to make some shots, or we are going to lose against a good team,” he later added. “That’s it. It’s not that complicated.”

The percentage of shooting three made the Orange’s performances in the paint in vain. Senior center Rakeem Christmas had 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting, 15 rebounds, three blocks and three assists. The double-double was his second this season after one against Hampton. Freshman forward McCullough finished with 13 points and 8 rebounds. The duo did not rest a single minute in the game.

Syracuse had 20 free throws in the game but only converted half of them. McCullough, who had a 61.8 percentage from the line, went 3-of-10 this time.

"It's just concentration to take my time to focus," McCullough said.

Momentum shifts

The crowd got fired up at the dunk, with 8:27 left in the game, when Ron Patterson found McCullough for an alley-oop that tied the score at 51.

“I caught the ball, seeing Chris jump from the weak side,” Patterson said. “I know he’s going to get it if I threw it up.”

Before that dunk, Syracuse had trailed all the second half. Its largest deficit was eight when Harrison’s three-point heave found the bottom of the net after the ball banked off the glass, four minutes before the SU alley-oop.

The crowd got fired up again when Gbinije hit that step-back jumper.But the momentum then got lost and the Orange’s defense slipped, enabling those three-pointers. The offense did not go well, either. The team committed two turnovers after Greene's three-pointer tied the game at 55.

“We have to hold on to stuff like that,” Patterson said. “When we get opportunities we have to take advantage of stuff like that. We didn’t. That cost us.”
 

Gbinije starts, Roberson sits

Gbinije stepped on the court as the team’s starting forward. It was his first time this season, in fact the first start ever for the Duke transfer. He played 37 minutes and finished the game with 13 points on 6-of-10 shooting. He grabbed five rebounds and dished out five assists.

“It was a good experience for me,” Gbinije said. “Especially (when I) haven’t started any game in my whole college career, it was definitely nice to come and start.”

Gibnije scored the team’s first two points with a jumper. He made the Orange's lone three-pointer in the first half to give Syracuse a 9-8 lead over St. John’s with 13:44 left in the first half. It was SU's first lead in the game.

He also had a chance to complete an and-one play when he made a layup while drawing the foul. However, he missed the free throw.

What might have been a Syracuse highlight wound up as a plus for St. John's with 6:38 left in the first half. Gbinije soared and tried to dunk. Instead of finding the rim, the ball found the hands of St. John’s center Chris Obekpa, who had four blocks in the game.

“He made a good block,” Gbinije said. “In the back of my mind I was waiting for a second opportunity to try to even the score. But it didn't happen.”

6'8" sophomore Tyler Roberson did not play Saturday. Boeheim said it was because of his health. Roberson could not practice on Friday, Boeheim said.

“If you can’t practice the day before the game, you won’t play,” Boeheim said.

Up next

Syracuse will host Louisiana Tech on Sunday, Dec. 14. The game will start at 4 p.m. at the Carrier Dome.