Yardbarker: Syracuse Orange

Wesley Johnson took 39% of his team’s shots

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:48:05 -0500

In some future time, that will be the headline from a game like Syracuse’s exhibition loss to Le Moyne on Tuesday. The actual outcome of the contest, while surprising, isn’t terribly significant. Michigan State memorably lost to Grand Valley State in an exhibition two years ago and ended up as a five-seed. Heck, last season Utah lost to Southwest Baptist in a game that counted and also was given a five-seed come March. There’s not much to be learned from early November games against D-II comp...

Coach, What Rhymes With 'Le Moyne'?

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:35:49 -0500

By now, you've undoubtedly heard that Syracuse, a preseason No. 25 pick in the coaches' poll, dropped a game to Division II Le Moyne on Tuesday night. Maybe they're dealing with heavy roster turnover. Maybe Le Moyne is just a sneaky good Division II team. One thing they shouldn't have been short on was motivation. I mean, one of their assistant coaches -- Rob Murphy -- actually recorded a freestyle for the player introductions. There's good news o...

Headlinin': The curious departure of Mike Williams

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:06:36 -0500

• We Hardly Knew Ye. There was plenty of intrigue Monday around the sudden, unexplained exit of Syracuse receiver Mike Williams just a few days after he was named one of 10 semifinalists for the Biletnikoff Award as the best receiver in the country. Williams has a winding history at SU: An instant-impact type as a true freshman, he was All-Big East as a sophomore in 2007 before being declared academically ineligible in 2008; after working his way back into school and onto the roster und...

Around the League: Syracuse

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 02:24:00 -0500

This is the first installment of Around the League, a look at what other bloggers think about their teams. We start with Sean Keeley from the excellent website Nunesmagician.com.How do you feel about the exodus of your key players?The not-so-dirty secret is that Syracuse fans were actually kinda okay with losing Eric Devendorf and Paul Harris. Both brought a lot to the table with their abilities to score and make plays but both were prone for defensive lapses and brought a lot of off-the-cour...

Jonny Flynn: Head Of The Class

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:11:12 -0500

Vict’ry’s in sight for old Syr-a-cuse. Each loyal son knows she ne’er more will lose. For we’ll fight, yes, we’ll fight, and with all our might , for the glory of old Syracuse. -Syracuse Fight Song Public Service Announcement: Ok, here we go! If you read this space with any regularity, you know I love me [...]

Syracuse pleasantly surprised by PG options

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:56:37 -0500

Mike DeCourcy, Sporting News Syracuse might not be certain yet who will replace Jonny Flynn at point guard, but either way the answer might be a pleasant one. SU started freshman Brandon Triche at the point in Saturday's exhibition win over Cal State-Los Angeles and spelled him with redshirt sophomore Scoop Jardine. Together, they combined for 14 assists and zero turnovers. The two players represent a distinct change from Flynn, a dynamic playmaker who specialized in getting th...

Orange Paces CSULA, 44-19, at Halftime

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 09:21:43 -0500

Live Video/Audio | Live Stats The strong inside play of junior forward #Rick Jackson# has propelled the Orange to a 44-19 lead against Cal State Los Angeles at halftime. Jackson leads all scorers with 10 points on 4-for-7 shooting and 2-for-5 from the charity stripe while collecting a game-high eight boards.

Shockingly, Ramon Sessions and Jonny Flynn Can't Really Play Together

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 09:23:00 -0500

by Tom ZillerFiled under: TimberwolvesWhen new Minnesota GM David Kahn made a play for free agent point guard Ramon Sessions, there were two ways to look at it. On the surface, the Sessions deal (four years, $16 million) is a fair price for a solid young playmaker. Given how bad Minnesota's backcourt has been, Sessions can't hurt, right?But Kahn famously selected two high-profile point guards within the top six picks of the June draft, Spaniard Ricky Rubio and Syracuse's Jonny Fly...

The country's top 50 shooters in 2009-10

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 13:43:12 -0500

Syracuse lost some perimeter scoring from '09, but Andy Rautins is ready to take over. Jeff Goodman lists the nation's top 50 shooters.

The country's top shooters in 2009-10

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 12:36:58 -0500

Syracuse lost some perimeter scoring from '09, but Andy Rautins is ready to take over. Jeff Goodman ranks the nation's top 50 shooters.

Orange coach thinks Paulus could play in pros

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 09:29:19 -0500

Sporting News staff reports Syracuse coach Doug Marrone thinks Orange QB Greg Paulus has what it takes to play at the next level. Although the former Duke point guard has thrown three interceptions in two games, two of those picks were off deflections in a 28-7 loss at Penn State on Saturday. Paulus was 14 for 20 for 105 yards with one touchdown in the game and has completed 64.7 percent of his passes in two games against Big Ten teams. If not for several drops, the Orange might ve...

NBA Early Entrants That Should Have Stayed In School

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 11:39:00 -0500

The NBA Draft has come and gone and everyone is assessing the damage. Who are the winners? Who are the losers? Who fits well and who could surprise?

Well, there was also the guys who weren't selected in either round of the draft. Some of those cats left school early and saw their dreams dashed. Here is a list of some of the ones who should've stayed on campus for at least one more year:

-Brandon Costner, NC State: No one believed he was NBA-ready but he was tired of getting mis-used at State. So much so that he rather toil in Europe than go through his senior season. Well, he'll get that chance.

-Eric Devendorf, Syracuse: Devendorf had worn out his welcome at the 'Cuse but he still could have come back for a last hurrah before his stint in the lower level leagues.

-Paul Harris, Syracuse: Another pre-mature entrant from Syracuse.

-Terrence Roderick, UAB: Um, why did he leap to the NBA?

-Nate Miles, So. Idaho: Remember that Miles got in some trouble at UConn because of his ties with an agent. He ended up in Idaho for his freshman season. Interesting that no one was even thinking of drafting Miles ... yet dude had an agent all these years.

-Kareem Cooper, UTEP: Another guy that either overvalued himself or just hated going to class.

Now, I know that people are putting DeJuan Blair in this category. Yeah, he dropped in the draft like a rock but I wouldn't say that him leaving was a complete mistake. He'll have a good shot to latch on with the Spurs (who drafted him in the 2nd round) and get his payday a lot earlier than he would if he was a first rounder. Also, do you think any of the concerns teams had about him would have gone away if he played another year or two at Pitt?

Scoop might be reshirting...

Sat, 27 Sep 2008 20:48:40 -0500

Since football is becoming pretty depressing on all basis, here is a "Quick Hit Post". I heard on the news this evening that sophomore point guard Scoop Jardine might be red shirting this coming season.

Eric Devendorf gets an extra year at SU

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 18:44:14 -0500

As the SU football fans begin to think about the basketball season, here is a small blog to cheer them up. The NCAA has decided to give guard Eric Devendorf an extra year of eligibility.

Some recruits coming to the Jim Boeheim's Elite Camp

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 22:54:12 -0500

From my favorite recruiting blog when it comes to the Northeast, ZagsBlog, comes word about some players headed to Syracuse this weekend for Jim Boeheim's Elite Camp.

SU Basketball, Top Ten in All Time Ranking

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 21:23:27 -0500

As usual, I love going around to the college sports sites from the main stream media because they usually have good material that I can add/subtract/give my statement about it. Today is no different as I find this article on "Beyond the Arc" (NBC Sports) talking about the greatest basketball programs ever.

Where is Gerry McNamara now?

Fri, 14 Mar 2008 10:50:05 -0500

Gerry McNamara was a fan favorite at Syracuse. His clutch plays (and ESPN's tendency to overrate him) were noted by college basketball fans nationwide. How exactly has McNamara faired professionally? Where is he now?

Hey Dickie V!

Tue, 08 Jan 2008 15:23:16 -0500

Not only does Syracuse super frosh Donte Greene dominate on the court (19.1 PPG, 7.1 RPG) but the kid can jam!

Syracuse's basketball team is young and fun to watch

Sat, 17 Nov 2007 01:03:07 -0500

After their first wins of the season the Orange Men's basketball team will now prepare to go play at their home away from home, Madison Square Garden. And while their first two opponents were no cupcakes (Siena and St. Joe's) their next game in the Pre Season NIT will be their first true challenge, Ohio State University.

The Syracuse 2-3 Zone

Wed, 17 Oct 2007 18:05:44 -0500

What has made Syracuse so good in the Jim Boeheim era certainly can be attributed to his signature 2-3 matchup zone. It has vexed many coaches in the past and safe to say it will continue to this coming season.