In case you live under a rock and haven't heard about Syracuse's epic 127-117 six-overtime win over the Connecticut Huskies, I've gathered a few links to some coverages of the game and added some thoughts of my own below.
Bud Poliquin, the mercurial Syracuse Post-Standard columnist, weighs in on last night's epic game: Poliquin.
Gerry McNamara went on the Dan Patrick radio show this morning and commented on the game, which he was in attendance for.
For the UCONN perspective, check out Mike Anthony's piece in today's Hartford Courant.
And for this Orange fan's take on the game, just read on. I had the misfortune of having made the decision NOT to travel to the Big Apple for the second half of spring break to watch my beloved Orange scribble another chapter in their illustrious Big East tournament history.
Four of my roommates made the trip, including The Vent's own Jay and Bill, with whom I exchanged frantic text messages with for the entire second half and all of the overtimes. Those boys scalped tickets for last night's game for $150 a piece....questionable tactics, unless you could have predicted the way this one was going to go down, and I don't think that anyone could.
A few things REALLY stick out in my mind about this game. First, you have got to applaud the guts and heart of this Orange team, particularly their point guard and leader Johnny Flynn. Flynn logged a superhuman 67 minutes while showing minimal signs of fatigue down the stretch when his team needed him most.
Speaking of "the stretch", Jim Boeheim must be applauded for the management of his tired squad in the later overtime periods. The decision to go with Kris Joseph, a freshman from Montreal, Canada instead of another post player turned out to be a gambit that paid dividends for the Orange. Joseph continually buckled down in the center of the back line of the 'Cuse 2-3 to haul down important rebounds in amongst the trees of the Huskies front line.
Even though Thabeet had fouled out, which made it more reasonable for Boeheim to play with 5 guards on the floor, I half expected Boeheim to go with the unproven and unpolished Sean Williams just to keep a post presence in the game. Jimmy did no such thing, proving once again why he is a Hall of Fame coach and I am a contributor to an up and coming sports blog.
Speaking of Hall of Fame coaches, I was disappointed in the way that Jim Calhoun's boys attacked the tired 2-3 zone of the Orange in the overtime sessions. Ball movement was minimal after Thabeet fouled out, and UConn execution on offense all but disappeared in the final three OT sessions. Whether it was fatigue on the part of his guys or just the will of the Orange defense, Connecticut was unable to execute on the offensive end of the floor when they needed it most.
Last but not least, as a fan, how could you not have loved the play-by-play calls of 'Cuse alumni Sean McDonough? He was sensational, bringing genuine court side excitement to me in my lonely Massachusetts living room.
Tonight the Orange will play their semi-final game against the West Virginia Mountaineers. Many times during last night's broadcast the announcers referred the fatigue factor that will most certainly be present for the Orange in the semi-final game this evening. True, the Orange will have legs that may be a bit more tired than their opponents', but you've got to remember that these boys are in the prime of their lives. I do NOT expect fatigue to be a factor for the Orange in tonight's contest. I like the 'Cuse to win by 6-10 points in a well played basketball game.
Bud Poliquin, the mercurial Syracuse Post-Standard columnist, weighs in on last night's epic game: Poliquin.
Gerry McNamara went on the Dan Patrick radio show this morning and commented on the game, which he was in attendance for.
For the UCONN perspective, check out Mike Anthony's piece in today's Hartford Courant.
And for this Orange fan's take on the game, just read on. I had the misfortune of having made the decision NOT to travel to the Big Apple for the second half of spring break to watch my beloved Orange scribble another chapter in their illustrious Big East tournament history.
Four of my roommates made the trip, including The Vent's own Jay and Bill, with whom I exchanged frantic text messages with for the entire second half and all of the overtimes. Those boys scalped tickets for last night's game for $150 a piece....questionable tactics, unless you could have predicted the way this one was going to go down, and I don't think that anyone could.
A few things REALLY stick out in my mind about this game. First, you have got to applaud the guts and heart of this Orange team, particularly their point guard and leader Johnny Flynn. Flynn logged a superhuman 67 minutes while showing minimal signs of fatigue down the stretch when his team needed him most.
Speaking of "the stretch", Jim Boeheim must be applauded for the management of his tired squad in the later overtime periods. The decision to go with Kris Joseph, a freshman from Montreal, Canada instead of another post player turned out to be a gambit that paid dividends for the Orange. Joseph continually buckled down in the center of the back line of the 'Cuse 2-3 to haul down important rebounds in amongst the trees of the Huskies front line.
Even though Thabeet had fouled out, which made it more reasonable for Boeheim to play with 5 guards on the floor, I half expected Boeheim to go with the unproven and unpolished Sean Williams just to keep a post presence in the game. Jimmy did no such thing, proving once again why he is a Hall of Fame coach and I am a contributor to an up and coming sports blog.
Speaking of Hall of Fame coaches, I was disappointed in the way that Jim Calhoun's boys attacked the tired 2-3 zone of the Orange in the overtime sessions. Ball movement was minimal after Thabeet fouled out, and UConn execution on offense all but disappeared in the final three OT sessions. Whether it was fatigue on the part of his guys or just the will of the Orange defense, Connecticut was unable to execute on the offensive end of the floor when they needed it most.
Last but not least, as a fan, how could you not have loved the play-by-play calls of 'Cuse alumni Sean McDonough? He was sensational, bringing genuine court side excitement to me in my lonely Massachusetts living room.
Tonight the Orange will play their semi-final game against the West Virginia Mountaineers. Many times during last night's broadcast the announcers referred the fatigue factor that will most certainly be present for the Orange in the semi-final game this evening. True, the Orange will have legs that may be a bit more tired than their opponents', but you've got to remember that these boys are in the prime of their lives. I do NOT expect fatigue to be a factor for the Orange in tonight's contest. I like the 'Cuse to win by 6-10 points in a well played basketball game.
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