Spring Break
The Daily OrangeMBB | THAT'S 3: Syracuse's 6-man team scores 3rd consecutive win
By Matt Gelb
Posted: 2/2/08, 4:12 PM EST Section: Sports
PHILADELPHIA - Donte Greene said he never expected a week like this. Sure, he thought, it's possible Syracuse could win all three of its games within a seven-day span.
But with effectively six players and no bench? And two of those games on the road? No way.
Wake up Syracuse fans, this team is back in contention.
Syracuse won its second consecutive road Big East game, here at the Wachovia Center, an 87-73 victory over Villanova in front of 19,866 on Saturday. The win extends a three-game streak and caps a most improbable week with one of the Orange's best team efforts of the season.
Syracuse improves to 16-7 and 6-4 in the Big East. In this week alone, the Orange has gone from 13th place in the conference to sixth. And now, a showdown with plenty of NCAA implications looms against Connecticut (16-5, 6-3) on Wednesday at the Carrier Dome.
"Even over these past two wins we had games where (someone is) playing good and two people aren't playing good," guard Jonny Flynn said. "This was a game today where everybody was playing good. If we can keep it like this, you're going to see a lot of scores like this."
And with seven players (really, only six) and playing the third game in a week, Syracuse knew the scoring would have to be spread out and not dependent on one player.
Paul Harris and Kristof Ongenaet scored career-highs in points, 28 and 12, respectively. Flynn finally found his stroke, going 8-for-11 from the field for 24 points. Greene chipped in a more than modest 17 points.
"I've said we're a talented team, anyone can score at anytime," Greene said. "Kristof had a big game for us today. Paul played great. Myself and Jonny contributed as we normally do. This is a good team win."
Even with Scoop Jardine returning from his suspension, Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim mostly stuck with a six-man rotation, citing Jardine's lack of practice in the past week. The freshman, who was linked to an SUID theft by his cousin, played only three minutes in his first game back.
But with effectively six players and no bench? And two of those games on the road? No way.
Wake up Syracuse fans, this team is back in contention.
Syracuse won its second consecutive road Big East game, here at the Wachovia Center, an 87-73 victory over Villanova in front of 19,866 on Saturday. The win extends a three-game streak and caps a most improbable week with one of the Orange's best team efforts of the season.
Syracuse improves to 16-7 and 6-4 in the Big East. In this week alone, the Orange has gone from 13th place in the conference to sixth. And now, a showdown with plenty of NCAA implications looms against Connecticut (16-5, 6-3) on Wednesday at the Carrier Dome.
"Even over these past two wins we had games where (someone is) playing good and two people aren't playing good," guard Jonny Flynn said. "This was a game today where everybody was playing good. If we can keep it like this, you're going to see a lot of scores like this."
And with seven players (really, only six) and playing the third game in a week, Syracuse knew the scoring would have to be spread out and not dependent on one player.
Paul Harris and Kristof Ongenaet scored career-highs in points, 28 and 12, respectively. Flynn finally found his stroke, going 8-for-11 from the field for 24 points. Greene chipped in a more than modest 17 points.
"I've said we're a talented team, anyone can score at anytime," Greene said. "Kristof had a big game for us today. Paul played great. Myself and Jonny contributed as we normally do. This is a good team win."
Even with Scoop Jardine returning from his suspension, Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim mostly stuck with a six-man rotation, citing Jardine's lack of practice in the past week. The freshman, who was linked to an SUID theft by his cousin, played only three minutes in his first game back.
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