Boeheim’s Army Survives 2OT Scare from Gaelnation Squad

Boeheim’s Army cruised through their first round game on Saturday in The Basketball Tournament. On Sunday, however, there team barely got by. Inside The Loud House has the story.

Boeheim’s Army was a heavy favorite to win once again as they took on Gaelnation on Sunday. However, a victory for the Syracuse basketball alumni team was not at all easy.

Coming into the matchup, Boeheim’s Army was a 3-seed, while Gaelnation was an 11-seed. Gaelnation, a team made up of Iona alumni, played far better than expected in this matchup.

For most of the game, it looked like another walk in the park win for Boeheim’s Army. But a late rally by the Gaels followed by a massive offensive collapse by the Orange squad eventually led to overtime.

To start off the game, Donte Greene took multiple shots to warm up after missing the game yesterday after attending a wedding. He missed most of them, but didn’t let up once he got hot around the 16 minute mark. As a result, other players on the Army started to get involved and it felt another easy win was imminent.

By halftime, Boeheim’s Army had raced out to a 15 point lead. However, Gaelnation was no where near finished.

To start off the second half, The Gaels once again played uninspired basketball, trailing by more than 20 on multiple occasions. But around the 12 minute mark in the second half, that all changed.

Suddenly, no shots fell for Boeheim’s Army, and Gaelnation couldn’t miss. The former Orange players seemingly had the life sucked out of them and the Gaels took advantage. With about four minutes left, the lead had entirely eroded as Gaelnation went on a 20-2 run and even took the lead near the end of the game.

Luckily, that’s when Boeheim’s Army plugged in the most recent addition John Gillon. Known for being a clutch finisher with multiple game winning shots while at Syracuse this past year, he was perfect choice for the moment.

He struck early and often, driving to the lane to either score or draw the foul to keep the Syracuse alumni in the game. As many of you know, John Gillon was a terrific free throw shooter in college as he made more than 40 in a row during ACC play this past year. That came in handy late to help Boeheim’s Army in the closing minutes.

In addition, Gillon got the chance to take the game-winning shot off a pass from Eric Devendorf, but it missed with three seconds to go. Unfortunately, since he took the shot too early, it gave Gaelnation a chance to take the last shot. Luckily, they missed, sending the game to overtime.

In the overtime period, Boeheim’s Army turned to Devendorf to pull the team through it’s struggles offensively. Fortunately, he was up to the challenge as he has been in years past when given that responsibility for Boeheim’s Army.

The teams would play close the entire overtime period, but the Army would get the chance to have the last shot once again. Unfortunately, a drive by Gillon got blocked at the rim and he didn’t draw a foul call, sending the game to a second overtime.

In the second overtime, both teams started looking really exhausted. Shots were falling way short, barely touching the front and side iron. In addition, passes we’re sloppy which led to several turnovers for both teams.

Luckily for the Orange fans in attendance in Philly and watching on WatchESPN at home who stuck around for the entire game, they were in for a good ending. Devendorf demanded the ball be in his hands as he made multiple layups. In the end, a shot from downtown late in the second overtime to put the Army up for good. The score wound up being 106-100. As a result, Boeheim’s Army will move onto the Super 16 in Brooklyn on July 20th.