The Syracuse Orangemen barely got by the number one ranked Louisville Cardinal team at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville. With 15 turnovers, this was hardly a game in which the Orange overly dominated as the affair was close and easily could have been anyone’s game especially down the stretch. In the end however it was a Syracuse victory over Louisville 70 to 68.
Smith of Louisville led all scorers with 25 while Behanan and Blackshear both had nine apiece. Brandon Triche let the Orange with 23, Carter-Williams had 16 and Grant and Fair both had 10. The guard play was up-tempo but created many mistakes as Michael Carter-Williams had 8 of the 15 team turnovers alone. Triche on the other side got off his shot when he wanted shooting 9 for 13 but a bit more ball movement at times could have worked in the Orangemen’s favor in making the Cardinal work more on defense before throwing up the rock.
Towards the end, Siva for the Cardinals turned the ball over and Carter-Williams had another break-away slam (was fouled but no call) and Louisville still had a chance to come back. With 13 seconds, the Orange allowed the Cardinals to conveniently roll the ball all the way to mid-court giving them a comfortable chance to comeback. I’m not saying they needed to pull out the Press 51 or anything but at least have one guy pressure the ball with only 13 seconds, and force them into maybe a hurry up shot?
As it was for both teams, turnovers just simply killed them. An unfortunate turnover by Louisville down low secured the Orangemen victory and granted Syracuse atop the Big East standing at 16-1 though it really was an ugly win. They will get a bump from no 6 up to a top 3 spot but don’t let that fool you, this team is vulnerable. As for the Louisville Cardinals, they didn’t stay at number one very long but they’ll have plenty of chances to redeem themselves on March 2nd when they meet again.
PLAYER ROSTER/STATS AREA
| # | Player | Pos | Ht | Wt | Class | PPG | RPG | APG | TO | BLK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Carter-Williams | G | 6’5′ | 184 | So. | 16 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 2 |
| 25 | Rakeem Christmas | F | 6’9′ | 228 | So. | 2 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 23 | Russ DeRemer | G | 6’5′ | 208 | Jr. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | CJ Fair | F | 6’8′ | 212 | Jr. | 10 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 4 | Nolan Hart | G | 5’10’ | 155 | Jr. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | Griffin Hoffmann | G | 6’0′ | 178 | Sr. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | Baye Keita | C | 6’10’ | 215 | Jr. | 4 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | Matt Lyde-Cajuste | F | 6’4′ | 205 | Sr. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | Albert Nassar | F | 6’6′ | 195 | So. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 43 | James Southerland | F | 6’8′ | 215 | Sr. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | Brandon Triche | G | 6’4′ | 205 | Sr. | 23 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 10 | Trevor Cooney | G | 6’4′ | 188 | Fr. | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | DaJuan Coleman | C | 6’10’ | 285 | Fr. | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | Michael Gbinije | F | 6’7′ | 205 | So. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Jerami Grant | F | 6’7′ | 190 | Fr. | 10 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
TEAM SCHEDULE AREA
| Date | Opponent |
|---|---|
| Jan. 26 | at Villanova |
| Feb. 02 | at Pittsburgh |
| Feb. 04 | Notre Dame |
| Feb. 10 | St. John’s |
| Feb. 13 | at Connecticut |
| Feb. 16 | at Seton Hall |
| Feb. 20 | Providence |
| Feb. 23 | Georgetown |
| Feb. 25 | at Marquette |
| Mar. 02 | Louisville |
| Mar. 06 | DePaul |
| Mar. 09 | at Georgetown |
MARCHVEGAS 2013To catch the Badgers for March Madness, why not take a break, “March to Vegas” and see all the excitement at once for the first round of the tournament? Watch hoops and gamble by day, play and party by night for 4 blissful days; it’ll feel just like a 4-day™ holiday.
MARCHVEGAS 2013 is from Thursday March 21st till Sunday March 24th. Though visiting Las Vegas is the greatest during this time, it is only optional. You must think real hard young Jedi and decide if you want to “work” or take the MARCHVEGAS 4-day Holiday. If you choose the later, then Sign the Petition, “Make MARCHVEGAS a 4-day holiday and check out our travel options to Las Vegas.
By Roy George
[MARCHVEGAS] – noun 1. “March to Vegas” symbolizes the humanistic tendency to march, migrate, or advance as a deliberate or organized body in a habitual manner back to Las Vegas. 2. Marriage of March Madness and Las Vegas, especially during tournament time. 3. The “MARCHVEGAS 4-day™ Holiday” (March 21 – 24, 2013) – Sign the Petition.