Syracuse Basketball: Top 3 NCAA Tournament games in Boeheim era

3. Syracuse vs. Georgia, 1996 Sweet Sixteen

“The ‘Cuse is in the House, Oh my God! Oh my God! The ‘Cuse is in the House, Oh my God!”

That was the song sung by the victorious Orangemen after their thrilling 83-81 OT win in Denver, over the Bulldogs to advance into the Elite Eight. The song and our team’s jubilation sent legendary coach and announcer Al McGuire into a dance, brought smiles to Syracuse basketball fans everywhere and memorably capped a game with so many ups and downs it’s amazing our hearts could take it.

Coach Tubby Smith’s Georgia team was an 8 seed, looking for an upset over No. 4 seed Syracuse in the West Region. The Bulldogs came back from down 7 to the Orange at halftime and took a 70-68 lead with 3.5 seconds remaining after two maddening offensive rebounds and three shots on the basket on their last possession.

But then the real March Madness took over.

Syracuse basketball took a timeout and from under our own basket moved the ball up to around half-court to take another timeout. Then SU forward John Wallace, the best player on the floor and in my opinion the entire NCAA tournament that year, with 2.4 seconds left, made an incredible inbound pass to the far corner baseline to Jason Cipolla. Cipolla, a junior transfer shooter, swished one of the most exciting tying baskets in program history as the regulation clock expired.

But the breathtaking action was just heating up. The last minute of the OT would be hard to make up for a fictional tale. Wallace, who averaged 22 points and 9 rebounds in his senior campaign, scored under the basket with 15 seconds left to give Syracuse the lead, 80-78.

But as TV analyst McGuire yelled at the Syracuse defense, “you don’t want to give them the 3-point shot!” Georgia indeed got the 3 point shot, converted and put the Bulldogs up 81-80 with 7 seconds left.

There would be no time out this time. Wallace got the inbound pass at half-court and took it directly to the top of the key for a 3-pointer that went straight in with 2.8 seconds left to reclaim the lead for Syracuse basketball. The crowd was deafening, having witnessed big shot after big shot by both teams.

Georgia had no more miracles, and the Orange advanced as McGuire screamed to a national audience what we all were saying, “WHAT A GAME! WHAT A GAME!”

The Orange went on to upset Kansas in the Elite Eight, advancing to Boeheim’s third Final Four as head coach, where the ‘Cuse beat Mississippi State before eventually falling to a loaded No. 1 Kentucky team in the title game.

In that Georgia Sweet Sixteen contest, Wallace finished with 30 points and 15 rebounds, even though he could only play 35 of the 45 minutes due to foul trouble. Center Otis Hill, one of the most underrated players in program history, had 19 points and 11 boards. Cipolla finished with 17 points, point guard and local product Lazarus Sims had 10 points and 10 assists, and Todd Burgan was the other solid player throughout with 7 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals.

Two bits of trivia tied to that game. First of all, one of the heroes,  Cipolla, went on to be a longtime boyfriend of Lorraine Bracco of Sopranos fame. Second, former Syracuse football QB and should-be future Pro Football Hall of Famer Donovan McNabb, who was a “walk-on” for the Orange basketball team, played 8 minutes for Boeheim in the game.

Relive the conclusion: