SYRACUSE - And you thought things couldn't get any worse.
Syracuse has coughed up plenty of leads this season. But nothing quite like this.
The Orange blew an 11-point second-half lead against Rhode Island.
They blew an 11-point lead in the final 3:49 against Pittsburgh.
They blew an 11-point first-half lead against Villanova in the Big East Conference Tournament.
You get the picture. It hasn't been pretty.
But Syracuse saved its biggest debacle for the finale.
The Orange had one foot in the door at Madison Square Garden, leading Massachusetts by 22 points with 14:27 remaining in an NIT quarterfinal Tuesday at the Carrier Dome.
A return trip to New York seemed inevitable.
But true to recent form, Syracuse imploded.
The Minutemen suddenly caught fire, connecting on nine second-half 3-pointers and outscoring the Orange 59-34 after halftime to claim an 81-77 victory in front of another stunned Carrier Dome crowd.
If this game isn't a microcosm of the 2007-08 season, I don't know what is.
It had everything - missed free throws, significant turnovers, blown lay-ups - all key ingredients for your typical Orange collapse.
And, to of all teams, it happened against UMass, a squad that lit up Syracuse in a 107-100 victory on Nov. 28.
You want history? Well, UMass is the first non-conference foe to beat Syracuse twice in the same season since the 1922-23 campaign when Penn State accomplished the feat.
Another black mark in the books for a tremendously talented, but tremendously erratic bunch.
“It was a long, long season,” said freshman Jonny Flynn, who played every minute of Tuesday's game. “I lot of people say it flies by. Not this year, not with the minutes we had to play. We had to grow up quickly. It was like playing two seasons in one.”
The freshmen surely were chucked directly into the fire. Flynn and Donte Greene played veteran minutes. Scoop Jardine became comfortable playing in crunch time. And Rick Jackson made a name for himself at the defensive end.
In the long run, this season will be highly beneficial for the young guys. But it won't be memorable.
It has come to a point where the players can't help but relive all of the “what if” moments of the season. And there are many.
“I just think of the Ohio State game, the Rhode Island game, the game at Georgetown,” freshman Donte Greene said. “You want to go back but you can't. We had opportunities, we just didn't get the job done.”
It seems as though Syracuse has been reliving the same nightmare over and over. The same mistakes. The same results. Over and over.
But unlike “Groundhog Day,” this recurring story has no happy ending.
“We've been in this situation five or six times this year,” Arinze Onuaku said. “But this time we can't go out there and play and make up for it.”
There were some highs - beating Georgetown and Marquette - but the lows were far more deflating.
And the worst may be yet to come.
For the first time since he's stepped foot on campus, Greene acknowledged that he may turn pro.
“I don't know yet,” he curtly responded when asked if he was leaving for the NBA next year.
Despite being a projected first-round pick for much of his freshman campaign, Greene has never given any inkling that he might be one and done. He's even talked openly about how good “they” were going to be his sophomore year.
Well now, “they” might be without Donte.
Some of you may say good, we don't need him.
I say Syracuse does. Let's not overlook the fact that he averaged nearly 20 points per game, even when defenses zoned in on him.
His decision-making needs some work, but the kid is talented. You can't teach raw talent.
Think about Syracuse next year with Eric Devendorf, Andy Rautins and Greene out on the perimeter.
Try to find me a better shooting trio in the country.
It's scary to think how good the Orange might be. It's too early for projections, but it's never too early to start thinking toward the start of another season of college basketball in Central New York.
Even Flynn's excited.
“It always bring a smile to my face just thinking about it,” Flynn said, before adding “I'll be able to come out of the game and sit a couple minutes.”
At least now he can rest.
Let's just hope his dreams aren't filled with thoughts of UMass.
Sports Editor Ryan Day can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 258 or Ryan.Day@lee.net
The Orange blew an 11-point second-half lead against Rhode Island.
They blew an 11-point lead in the final 3:49 against Pittsburgh.
They blew an 11-point first-half lead against Villanova in the Big East Conference Tournament.
You get the picture. It hasn't been pretty.
But Syracuse saved its biggest debacle for the finale.
The Orange had one foot in the door at Madison Square Garden, leading Massachusetts by 22 points with 14:27 remaining in an NIT quarterfinal Tuesday at the Carrier Dome.
A return trip to New York seemed inevitable.
But true to recent form, Syracuse imploded.
The Minutemen suddenly caught fire, connecting on nine second-half 3-pointers and outscoring the Orange 59-34 after halftime to claim an 81-77 victory in front of another stunned Carrier Dome crowd.
If this game isn't a microcosm of the 2007-08 season, I don't know what is.
It had everything - missed free throws, significant turnovers, blown lay-ups - all key ingredients for your typical Orange collapse.
And, to of all teams, it happened against UMass, a squad that lit up Syracuse in a 107-100 victory on Nov. 28.
You want history? Well, UMass is the first non-conference foe to beat Syracuse twice in the same season since the 1922-23 campaign when Penn State accomplished the feat.
Another black mark in the books for a tremendously talented, but tremendously erratic bunch.
“It was a long, long season,” said freshman Jonny Flynn, who played every minute of Tuesday's game. “I lot of people say it flies by. Not this year, not with the minutes we had to play. We had to grow up quickly. It was like playing two seasons in one.”
The freshmen surely were chucked directly into the fire. Flynn and Donte Greene played veteran minutes. Scoop Jardine became comfortable playing in crunch time. And Rick Jackson made a name for himself at the defensive end.
In the long run, this season will be highly beneficial for the young guys. But it won't be memorable.
It has come to a point where the players can't help but relive all of the “what if” moments of the season. And there are many.
“I just think of the Ohio State game, the Rhode Island game, the game at Georgetown,” freshman Donte Greene said. “You want to go back but you can't. We had opportunities, we just didn't get the job done.”
It seems as though Syracuse has been reliving the same nightmare over and over. The same mistakes. The same results. Over and over.
But unlike “Groundhog Day,” this recurring story has no happy ending.
“We've been in this situation five or six times this year,” Arinze Onuaku said. “But this time we can't go out there and play and make up for it.”
There were some highs - beating Georgetown and Marquette - but the lows were far more deflating.
And the worst may be yet to come.
For the first time since he's stepped foot on campus, Greene acknowledged that he may turn pro.
“I don't know yet,” he curtly responded when asked if he was leaving for the NBA next year.
Despite being a projected first-round pick for much of his freshman campaign, Greene has never given any inkling that he might be one and done. He's even talked openly about how good “they” were going to be his sophomore year.
Well now, “they” might be without Donte.
Some of you may say good, we don't need him.
I say Syracuse does. Let's not overlook the fact that he averaged nearly 20 points per game, even when defenses zoned in on him.
His decision-making needs some work, but the kid is talented. You can't teach raw talent.
Think about Syracuse next year with Eric Devendorf, Andy Rautins and Greene out on the perimeter.
Try to find me a better shooting trio in the country.
It's scary to think how good the Orange might be. It's too early for projections, but it's never too early to start thinking toward the start of another season of college basketball in Central New York.
Even Flynn's excited.
“It always bring a smile to my face just thinking about it,” Flynn said, before adding “I'll be able to come out of the game and sit a couple minutes.”
At least now he can rest.
Let's just hope his dreams aren't filled with thoughts of UMass.
Sports Editor Ryan Day can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 258 or Ryan.Day@lee.net
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