Congratulations to Boeheim's Army 2021 TBT Champions

Boeheim's Army, the team comprised of six Syracuse alumni and four guests, won the The Basketball Tournament (TBT) last night with a dramatic 69-67 win over Team 23.  Keifer Sykes hit the game winning three point shot in the Elam ending to give Boeheim's Army the win. Boeheim's Army beat out 63 other teams to win the $1 million prize.

The game was a fun, tight affair for most the night, with a lot of aggressive defense and some clutch shooting.  

It was truly a magical Syracuse affair as four members of the Boeheim family were in attendance:  Jim,  Juli, Jimmy Jr, and Buddy.  All three Syracuse assistant coaches were also there:  Adrian Autry, Gerry McNamara, and Allen Griffin.  Syracuse booster and Boeheim's Army chairman of operations Adam Weitsman pledged $1 million donation to local Syracuse charities in honor of the win.

Tyrese Rice led all of BA's scorers with 86 points and 18 assists.  Chris McCullough was right behind him with 81 points, and a team leading 42 rebounds.  D.J. Kennedy, the TBT's all-time leading scorer, and 5-time tournament champion, had 35 points and 42 rebounds.

Keifer Sykes was the hottest shooter for Boeheim's Army hitting 50% of his three point attempts in the tournament, with 11 baskets in 22 attempts.  Eric Devendorf also hit 50%, making 4 of 8.

C.J. Fair has the best +/- for BA in the tournament with a +38, despite playing in the third fewest minutes, and half of what the leaders played.

A special thanks for the memories to Eric Devendorf and Tyler Lydon, who both have announced that they are retiring from professional basketball after last night.

Below is the composite scoring for all of Boeheim's Army over the six game tournament.

Boeheim's Army Combined Stats after 5 games

 Boeheim's Army has made the TBT Championship game, to be played this Tuesday night against Team 23.  

Here are the total stats of the Boeheim Army's players after five games:

Statistics of Note From 2020-2021

The Orange Men's basketball team wrapped up its season last week with the Sweet Sixteen loss to the Houston Cougars.  The team finished the season 18-10, with a winning percentage of 64.5%.  This is the best won/loss percentage since the 2013-2014 season when the team went  28-6.

Despite all the doom and gloom surrounding the program this year, the men's basketball team has made 11 of the past 12 NCAA tournaments.  The team has not bee seeded as high as fans are accustomed to, but it is not a case of the team not going to the dance.  In seven of those eleven appearances, the Orange have advanced to at least the Sweet Sixteen.

The 2020-2021 team set the school record for the best team free throw shooting percentage, making 78.2% of their free throws.  This shattered the school record of 75.1% set in 1983-1984.

The team averaged 15 assists per game.  That is the third highest average per game in the past nine seasons.  

The team shot 35.0% from three point range.  That is the team's third highest percentage in the past ten seasons.

Buddy Boeheim led the team with 17.8 points per game.  That may not seem high considering the previous four seasons had scoring leaders average more (Andrew White, Tyus Battle twice, and Elijah Hughes).   But consider that no Orange player averaged that amount of points for the nine seasons from 2007-2008 through 2015-2016.  That included Donte' Greene, Jonny Flynn, Wesley Johnson, Kris Joseph (twice), C.J. Fair (twice), Rakeem Christmas, and Michael Gbinije as scoring leaders.

Alan Griffin's free throw percentage of 89.7% is the highest since Gerry McNamara in 2005-2006.

Alan Griffin is the first small forward to lead the team in blocked shots.  He had more this year than Bourama Sidibe did last year.

 Buddy Boeheim's 14 three point field goals in the NCAA tournament were the third most ever by an  Orange player in the tournament.  Gerry McNamara's 18 in 2003 is tops.

Back to Back 30+ games

Buddy Boeheim just put together back to back 30+ point games.  The last time that happened for Syracuse was in 2005. Hakim Warrick had 35 against St. John’s and then 36 against Providence.

And unless I missed one, the previous time to that was Billy Owens who had back-to-backs in 1991. Rudy Hackett did it in 1975, Dennis DuVal in 1973, Greg Kohls in 1972.

Dave Bing did four in a row in 1966. He also had two in a row two other times that season, as well as one time in 1965.

Pete Chudy had 3 in a row in 1961, and early in the year he had 2 in a row.

Vinnie Cohen back-to-back in 1957, the first Orangeman to do back-to-back 30+ games.

Hopefully I didn’t miss any… with my tired eyes.

Of course none of them did it in the post season, like Mr. Boeheim did tonight.

Looking Forward to the Syracuse - San Diego State Game

I’m glad I get to see this year’s team continue to play. I’ve enjoyed the season, watching the players develop and grow, and to get to know the team’s personality as well as that of the individual players.  It was nice to see Buddy Boeheim get his shooting stroke back.  For a player like Marek Dolezaj the NCAA tournament gives him the opportunity to showcase what he brings to the table, a guy who always puts the "team first".

It would be great to see either Alan Griffin or Joe Girard get their shot back, and for Quincy Guerrier to be explosive for the whole game.  Hopefully Kadary Richmond's knee is comfortable enough for him to display some of his defensive wizardry.  And I hope both Robert Braswell and Jesse Edwards get some moments to shine.

The NCAA tournament is designed to give heartbreak to 67 out of 68 teams. I think we all know that, but we all don’t accept that. The key to me is for the Orange to play well, represent themselves well, and see where things fall.

Hopefully the Orange picked up no rust with their week off, and they can remember the game flow nuances that help them on both ends of the court.  

I have no idea how tonight's game will go.  This season has shown that anybody can beat anyone by any margin on a given night.  I hope the Orange bring their 'A' game tonight.  That is all I can ask.

Go Orange!

Perspective on Regular Season Games

I am a big fan of regular season games.  I enjoy the ebbs and flows of the season, and watching the team develop and mature, find its identity.  Every Syracuse team has its own identity.  There are commonalities among them, as it has been the same head coach for the past forty five years, but the players are different, the leaders are different, and the styles are varied.

The current season has been frustrating at times, but it has also had some highlight memories that I'll remember fondly.  The Orange still have three (or four) regular season games to go, and hopefully some more fond memories will arise.

I saw Syracuse trail Buffalo by sixteen points in the second half.  They put on a full court press, and Alan Griffin made a game saving block on a Bulls' layup as time expired to send the game into overtime. Syracuse would go on to win 107-96.

The Orange set a school record 16 three point shots made against Boston College in a 101-63 victory against the Eagles.  The 38 point margin is the largest winning margin by Syracuse in ACC play.  

Yesterday afternoon I saw the Orange erase a twenty point second half deficit to beat Notre Dame 75-67.  The Orange utilized a full court press to disrupt an efficient Fighting Irish offense, and Buddy Boeheim scored 20 of his 29 points in the second half to lead Syracuse.  Quincy Guerrier had ten of his fourteen rebounds in the second half, and Marek Dolezaj had another one of his well rounded games.

There are memories like these for every season. The conference tournaments bring their share of fond memories, as does the NCAA tournament.  They are all relevant to me and all cherished.

Build a Syracuse team using 1919-1920 rules

 The rules of college basketball have changed dramatically over the years. In many ways the game we play today is very different from the game Dr. James Naismith invented in 1892. The game did not suddenly change, but rather slowly evolved over time.

These were some of the rules differing from today for college basketball in the 1919-1920 season:

• Any player on the court can take the free throw, not just the player who was fouled
• There was no charging foul
• There was a jump ball after every made basket
• There is no shot clock, nor no 10 second mid-court violation
• There is no three second lane violation
• A player may not re-enter the game
• Coaches are not permitted to speak to players during the game
• A jump ball exists after every held ball
• There is no three point basket
• Traveling is a foul, not just a violation
• Players are disqualified after 4 fouls
• No Euro-step is permitted

Given these are the rules, what would be your all-time Syracuse squad to play in those conditions? Who are your starting five, and who are on your bench (we'll stick to 13 man roster if you want to have the complete roster).

I am definitely going to want some free throw shooters, and one needs to be on the court at all times. Fortunately poor shooting big men won’t matter, so guys like Rony Seikaly, Arinze Onuaku, and Stephen Thompson suddenly become more valuable.

I’m definitely have Gerry McNamara on my starting five, and Jimmy Lee and Greg Kohls off my bench in the event GMac ever fouls out or gets hurt.

Derrick Coleman is my starting center. He can camp out in the paint, and his low post moves and size would be tremendous. Plus he is a solid shot blocker, and with no goal tending restriction that would be amazing. And he is going to help a lot with the frequent jump balls. Rony Seikaly, Etan Thomas, and Roosevelt Bouie come off my bench. I’m going deep with centers off the bench because of possible foul problems.

You aren’t going to need three point shooters, but you are going to need mid range and perimeter shooters as the paint is going to be very crowded.

Carmelo Anthony is a no brainer, and I’ll add Billy Owens to the other wing. With Coleman, Anthony and Owens on the court, I’m going to have no problem bringing the ball up the court.

The impeccable Dave Bing is going to run the point for my team. I do want guys who can get the ball to the low post, so on the bench I'll have Sherman Douglas. I think his alley oop passes are a way to get around the openness on goaltending. With goal tending not being a rule, guys like the Pearl may have a bit tougher time.

I also think guys who have a strong low post game with a lot of dunking ability will thrive. So I’ve got to put Hakim Warrick on the squad, coming off the bench. His drop step dunk, especially with no charge calls, would be incredibly tough to stop.

And I want to fill out my roster with a great perimeter shooter who can pass the ball well. So Andy Rautins, welcome aboard.

So my squad is:

G: Dave Bing

G: Gerry McNamara

F: Carmelo Anthony

F: Billy Owens

C: Derrick Coleman

Bench

G: Greg Kohls

G: Jimmy Lee

G: Sherman Douglas

F/G: Andy Rautins

F: Hakim Warrick

C: Rony Seikaly

C: Etan Thomas

C: Roosevelt Bouie