Syracuse Basketball: Orange flashback to the 2003 national championship game

This battle would see two legendary head coaches go head-to-head, as Jim Boeheim of Syracuse basketball took on Roy Williams of Kansas in the championship game of the 2003 NCAA Tournament from New Orleans.

The Syracuse Orange (30-5 overall, 13-3 in the Big East), led by star players such as Carmelo Anthony, Gerry McNamara, and Hakim Warrick, would take on a talented Kansas Jayhawks team (30-8 overall, 14-2 in the Big 12) led by Kirk Hinrich, Nick Collison, and Keith Langford.

After a dominant first half from the Orange, which held a 53-42 lead at halftime, the Jayhawks would battle back late in the second half to make this a close game down the stretch. With just seconds left in the game, Kansas guard Michael Lee would have an attempt at a three-point shot to try and tie the game.

However, Syracuse forward Warrick would come up with the biggest block in Orange history, as he would block the ball out of bounds with .7 seconds on the clock. Kansas would have one more chance to tie the game, as the Jayhawks would inbound the ball to guard Hinrich to throw up a prayer three-point attempt, however, it was off and the Orange would win its first and only title in program history.

Looking back at the 2003 national title game between Syracuse basketball and Kansas.

Anthony would finish the game with 20 points and 10 rebounds, becoming the 2003 NCAA Tournament's Most Outstanding Player. McNamara would finish with 18 points and Hakim Warrick would only finish with six points, but his late-game block was one of the main reasons Syracuse basketball would win the national championship.

Hinrich of the Jayhawks would finish with 16 points. Nick Collison tallied 19 points and 21 rebounds, and Keith Langford would finish with 19 points in the loss.

Looking back on this moment for the Syracuse Orange, we see many amazing things come from this, as Carmelo would enter the 2003 NBA Draft, where he was selected third overall by the Denver Nuggets in a star-studded draft. McNamara would become an assistant to coach Jim Boeheim at Syracuse basketball, and it helped the program build a reputation as a powerhouse in college basketball for many years.

Earlier this spring, McNamara departed the Hill to become the head coach at Siena.

That glorious night on April 7, 2003, is just one of the moments that we will look back on in the program's history and call a landmark moment for the Orange.