On Saturday when Boeheim’s Army suits up again, let’s party like it’s 2013 for Syracuse basketball and its fan base.
When Boeheim’s Army (largely Syracuse alumni) faces the Golden Eagles (largely Marquette alumni) in The Basketball Tournament’s round of 8 in Dayton, a birth into the TBT final four will be on the line (ESPN, 2 pm ET).
Now quick, close your eyes and flashback to the 2013 NCAA Tournament, when Syracuse faced Marquette in the Elite Eight with a birth into the Final Four on the line.
Remember how the East Region’s No. 4 seed Orange’s 2-3 defense completely shut down No. 3 seed Marquette, 55-39, a game after doing the same to upset No. 1 Indiana, sending head coach Jim Boeheim to his 4th Final Four as head coach? It was beautiful.
Two players from that 2013 matchup played the game’s full 40 minutes: CJ Fair for Syracuse, and Vander Blue for Marquette.
Both Fair and Blue are on this year’s TBT rosters for their respective alumni clubs and will play key roles in Saturday’s game. Wednesday night in the TBT round of 16, Blue had 8 points as the Golden Eagles advanced, while CJ had 7 to help Boeheim’s Army.
In the 2013 NCAA game, CJ had 13 points on 5-11 shooting, 6 rebounds and 3 steals for the Orange. Blue, on the other hand, managed 14 points but on a dismal 3-15 from the field with 4 turnovers for Marquette.
The 2013 Syracuse basketball team featured its 2-3 zone perhaps at the height of its powers. No one could figure it out. We had the following year’s NBA Rookie of the Year Michael Carter-Williams and Brandon Triche at the top of the zone, Rakeem Christmas and Baye-Moussa Keita anchoring the middle and slick forwards CJ and James Southerland on the wings.
Jerami Grant, who is playing for Team USA in Tokyo right now, only saw 3 minutes of action off the bench for the Cuse.
Boeheim’s Army, with its Syracuse basketball players and others, next faces a Marquette alumni team.
Boeheim’s Army, while teasing us with some zone so far in its 3-game win streak to Dayton, has played mostly man. It suits their team makeup, which features 4 non-Syracuse players.
The defending TBT champion Golden Eagles also have some non-Marquette alumni who play key roles including Elgin Cook who had 19 points for them on Wednesday.
The three Marquette alumni from 2013 who are on the TBT Golden Eagles: Blue and the Wilson brothers, were a combined 4-26 in that NCAA Elite Eight game. Hopefully, they still have nightmares about that game and they carry over to Saturday’s contest.
Blue, in particular, had been spectacular in carrying Marquette into that round of eight before being shut down by the Cuse zone.
I’d like to see Boeheim’s Army show some 2-3 Saturday, just to spook them a little bit. Our guys CJ, Eric Devendorf, Malachi Richardson, Tyler Lydon, Andrew White and Chris McCullough all have extensive zone defense, Syracuse-style, experience and skills.
Sure, this weekend’s game has less significance than the 2013 matchup, but there’s more actual money on the line for the players – the eventual champion of the TBT will pocket the winner-take-all $1 million.
The Golden Eagles won the $1 million last year, so they know what it takes. Boeheim’s Army’s new players have won it in the past, so there isn’t much of an advantage there.
I’ll end with what Jim Boeheim said after the 2013 contest, a game no Syracuse fan who watched will ever forget because it sent us to the Final Four: “It was a tremendous, tremendous defensive effort,” Coach said.
Let’s run it back!