NEW YORK – During Syracuse’s game against Oklahoma State last night, two fans were randomly drawn out of the crowd to take part in a free-throw shooting contest. They were given 30 seconds to make as many foul shots as possible. John, the first fan, shot 2-for-7. Dave, the second fan, shot 2-for-8. Pretty miserable, huh?

Yes, but believe it or not, the players on the Syracuse men’s basketball team were almost worse. SU shot 7-for-22 from the foul line, good for 31 percent. It was a major reason why the Orange fell to Oklahoma State last night at Madison Square Garden, 74-60.

Senior forward Hakim Warrick was the biggest culprit, shooting 5-for-13 from the line. ‘I say it all the time, you win games on the free-throw line,’ SU guard Gerry McNamara said. ‘It’s true, because we lost one tonight.’

After the game, Warrick sat on a folding chair in the Syracuse locker room and stared blankly at the wall. He tore off the athletic tape on his feet and didn’t dare talk to his teammates around him.

‘I missed too many free throws tonight,’ Warrick said. ‘It just happens. I was thinking too much.

‘I’ve got to get over it mentally. It’s just a matter of concentrating. I’ve got to go out there and practice, hopefully get this going in the right direction.’

Warrick went to the line on seven occasions. He never made two free throws in a row. He said during the game his teammates attempted to console him and encouraged him to get out of his funk. It never happened.

Even McNamara, SU’s best foul shooter, missed a free throw in the second half.

‘There’s no excuse for not making foul shots,’ McNamara said. ‘(7-for-22)? That’s awful. There’s nothing I hate more.’

Oklahoma State shot 63 percent from the foul line, making 19 of 30 shots.

SU guard Billy Edelin said the free throws weren’t the only reason why the Orange lost. The Cowboys seemed more physical than SU (7-1), especially toward the end of the game. Also, while both teams struggled shooting the ball in the first half, the Cowboys (6-0) were markedly improved in the second.

SU and OSU shot only 36 and 32 percent, respectively, in the first half. But in the second, SU shot 42 percent while the Cowboys shot 58 percent.

Most of the SU misses seemed to come during a frantic last few minutes, when the Orange attempted to overcome a 10-point deficit.

McNamara pulled SU to within six with three 3-pointers, but that’s as close as it came.

‘We’d like to think we could make our free throws,’ Boeheim said. ‘We didn’t tonight.’

Published on December 7, 2004 at 12:00 pm