Syracuse Basketball: Rolls Past UNC-Greensboro To Advance In The NIT
By Neil Adler
Syracuse Basketball, despite bad weather outside, took care of business inside, beating UNC Greensboro in the Carrier Dome Wednesday night. Inside The Loud House recaps the game.
The Syracuse basketball squad rode a wave of hot shooting to cruise past UNC-Greensboro, 90-77, in front of a sparse Carrier Dome crowd on Wednesday night in the Orange’s opening-round NIT clash.
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The widely documented “feud” between head coach Jim Boeheim and the city of Greensboro provided some juicy fodder in this match-up, but the trash-talking really didn’t commence. Rather, the ‘Cuse, clearly bummed about getting left out of the Big Dance, took care of business, buoyed by stellar performances from graduate transfer Andrew White III and freshman Tyus Battle.
White, who played the entire 40 minutes, collected 34 points on 11-of-15 from the field, including 7-of-9 from downtown according to ESPN.com. Battle chipped in 20 points, and he had a handful of sweet finishes around the rim. Sophomore Tyler Lydon also registered a double-double, tallying 13 points and 10 boards. As a unit, SU shot 56 percent, and also 43 percent from 3-point land as well as 82 percent from the charity stripe.
As John Gillon Goes… So Does Orange? Not Last Tonight:
The Orange (19-14), the NIT’s No. 1 overall seed, outrebounded the Spartans (25-10), a No. 8 seed, by eight. Syracuse totaled 20 dimes and eight steals, but it also committed 17 turnovers, which is horrendous.
Starting point guard John Gillon, a grad transfer, scored just four points, dished out five assists and committed four turnovers. Boeheim, via Syracuse.com, had this to say:
"“I thought (Gillon) played maybe his worst game of the year. He’s either really good or really bad. He was terrible tonight.”"
Gillon’s poor outing led to sophomore Frank Howard getting 17 minutes of run, and he had three points, four assists and only one turnover.
A lot of ‘Cuse fans hate on Howard, and I get it. Expectations for him proved high in the 2016-17 campaign, and he mightily struggled. However, at least he made the most of his action versus UNC-Greensboro, and maybe this decent showing can provide a bit of a confidence boost moving forward.
The Good:
Let’s also give a small shout-out to senior Tyler Roberson, another guy who has had a rough season and, like Howard, lost his starting role a while ago. Roberson notched four points, seven rebounds, three dimes, two thefts and one block. Not too shabby.
The Spartans are a strong shooting outfit, so it didn’t surprise me that SU coughed up 77 points. Our boys simply don’t execute the 2-3 zone as well as previous Boeheim rosters. Still, I wish these players would actually put their hands up on defense. That might create more deflections, steals and fast-break opportunities.
We got a treat from White in this contest. By draining seven 3-pointers, he reached 109 in the 2016-17 stanza, passing former Orange star and current assistant coach Gerry McNamara, who totaled 107 in 2004-05. That, my friends, is quite an accomplishment, as we all know how lethal McNamara proved from beyond the arc.
And, of course, the classy McNamara absolutely praised White in comments to Syracuse.com.
"“If there’s a guy that’s going to break a record like that of mine, I want it to be a guy that prepares hard. He does everything the right way. I’ve admired the way he’s prepared himself this year. He’s approached this season with a purpose. He wanted to come here and make an impact and get better. … I’m happy to see a guy that works that hard get a record like that. I don’t care if it’s mine.”"
You can’t act any more gracious. Kudos to you, Gerry.
The Sad:
I wrote in a column earlier this week how truly awful I feel for Gillon and White, who transferred to the ‘Cuse to, hopefully, have the chance to suit up in the NCAA Tournament. Obviously, that didn’t occur, which stinks, but I’m delighted to see that they are doing everything possible to make the most of their NIT experience.
The Ugly:
It’s worth noting that a mere 4,288 SU faithful attended Wednesday evening’s game. Syracuse.com reported that this number may represent the smallest crowd for an Orange hoops affair since the Dome began rocking in 1980.
The recent bad weather in Central New York, students out on break this week and perhaps the stinging disappointment of missing the Big Dance could have contributed to the somewhat paltry attendance.
From what I could tell by watching on TV, however, a vast majority of empty seats didn’t prevent the atmosphere from getting exuberant. “I thought the people were good,” Boeheim told Syracuse.com. “I thought they were very good. Obviously, it’s tough to get out and get here.”
In improving to 4-0 all-time against UNC-Greensboro, Boeheim secured his 903rd victory, passing Bob Knight– again! – for second place in Division I men’s basketball history. But, who are we kidding? Boeheim has 1,004 wins.
Next: Syracuse Basketball: Andrew White Sets SU Single-Season Three’s Record
Next up for SU is Ole Miss, the No. 5 seed in the ‘Cuse’s region. The Orange will host the Rebels this Saturday, beginning at 11 am. Brunch time at the Carrier Dome!