Who’s the best on SU’s Bench? Talk about it on Dailyorange.com’s Basketball Forum

The Syracuse men’s basketball team came into Wednesday night’s game against St. Bonaventure as 30-point favorites. Against so many of its other early non-conference opponents, the starting five would open a huge lead in the first half, and SU head coach Jim Boeheim would dig deep into his bench to give younger players some experience.

But against the Bonnies, Boeheim went to his bench early and often before any significant lead opened.

Syracuse defeated St. Bonaventure, 91-67, at the Carrier Dome on Wednesday night in front of 19,956. The Orange featured 16 players against the Bonnies, 10 of whom got 10 minutes or more of playing time. The 16 included junior point guard Billy Edelin. It was Edelin’s first action in almost a year.

‘It was good to get everybody out there,’ Boeheim said. ‘This was a good opportunity to get our young guys to play.’

Less than a minute into the game, sophomore Terrence Roberts subbed in for center Craig Forth only to have Forth come back seconds later. Roberts would return to the game at the 15:16 mark of the first half before sophomore Darryl Watkins took his place less than a minute later. SU’s lead was only at six, 14-8.

After sophomore Demetris Nichols got his second foul of the game at 14:20, guard Louie McCroskey subbed in and the Orange began to widen its 16-8 lead. Forward Hakim Warrick, who played 18 minutes in the first half, helped the Orange pull away with a rebound and thunderous dunk at 13:26.

Freshman Josh Wright entered the game at 11:41 of the first half and made his impact felt after a poor outing against Siena in SU’s last game on Nov. 27. Wright finished with four points and six assists, including a couple of crowd-pleasing, no-look passes.

At 8:50, Edelin made his long-awaited return to the Carrier Dome court to a standing ovation from fans, players and coaches. ‘Bil-ly!’ chants emanated from the student section as SU led, 30-12.

‘Obviously he’s been away from the game for a long time now, competitively,’ Boeheim said. ‘This is the kind of opportunity he needs to get back.’

‘I just wanted to try to contribute and help my team win,’ Edelin said. ‘I think I can definitely help the younger guys and contribute myself. I’m not used to coming off the bench. My legs aren’t quite there yet.’

At 7:32, Edelin drove to the hoop, tossing up a prayer of a layup as he was knocked to the floor. An offensive foul was called and Edelin finally graced the score sheet once again.

As the Orange’s lead slipped to nine, SU began to shut off the Bonnies’ offense altogether as it switched from man-to-man to its 2-3 zone.

‘We struggled a little defensively,’ Boeheim said. ‘This was the first time we’ve played extended man-to-man. We’ve gotten away from it, and we haven’t used it extensively in three or four games.’

At 5:41 of the first half, senior Josh Pace returned to the game, displaying the quintet of Forth, Warrick, Pace, Gerry McNamara and Edelin, which was the starting five at the beginning of last season. Each of the five played a significant role in SU’s 2003 national championship.

SU finished the first half up, 46-26. Edelin got 15 minutes of play, six in the first half and nine in the second. He chipped in four points.

‘It’s good to have him back,’ Warrick said. ‘At first he looked kinda slow out there, but I think he did a good job making some plays for us.

‘These games are important for us. If (Edelin) can use these games to prepare for teams like Oklahoma State, he can help us down the road.’

Who’s the best on SU’s Bench? Talk about it on Dailyorange.com’s Basketball Forum

Published on December 1, 2004 at 12:00 pm