10 Deep
All the preseason Syracuse men’s basketball talk has not only been about SU’s two Wooden Award candidates. The talk has centered on its depth.
Though the 2004-05 team lacks a Carmelo Anthony, it may be deeper than the 2003 national championship team.
Head coach Jim Boeheim dug deep last night into his bench, subbing 10 players in and out of the lineup with ease. Even with five bench players on the court, Syracuse continued to widen its lead, eventually beating St. Rose, 91-59, at the Carrier Dome before 6,819 people.
‘We were much sharper than the other night,’ said Boeheim, referring to the Orange’s 101-46 win against Le Moyne. ‘We were real active on the boards and quicker to the ball.’
St. Rose opened the game tough, leading the Orange, 12-11, until SU took the lead for good off a Terrence Roberts slam with 10:50 remaining in the first half.
After Demetris Nichols made two free throws to extend the lead to 14-11, St. Rose again pulled to within one on a jumper by Adam McGuire.
From there, it was smooth sailing for the Orange. SU went on a 16-point run, which included six points from Hakim Warrick and six from Louie McCroskey.
Still, the Orange showed some weaknesses against a Division II opponent.
‘We just didn’t do a good job at all in the first half getting on the boards,’ Boeheim said. ‘Our decision-making was poor throughout the game. We made some really bad turnovers.
‘We were pushing the ball well and getting up the court. If you run, you’re going to make some mistakes.’
At game’s end, Syracuse had 23 turnovers, compared to only 16 by St. Rose. If the Golden Knights could’ve made some open shots in the first half, the game would’ve been a lot more interesting down the stretch.
Warrick, who led SU with 19 points, also dominated the smaller St. Rose lineup. The crowd fueled the run after an alley-oop by Warrick with 8:06 left in the first half.
‘We were sluggish,’ Roberts said. ‘We didn’t rebound as well as we should’ve.’
Nichols had 17 points, including 11 in the second half. Eight of those 11 came during a two-minute stretch, starting with a smooth 3-pointer with 9:28 remaining in the game.
Unlike its game against Le Moyne, during which SU subbed its bench five at a time, the Orange showed a variety of lineups against St. Rose.
‘I didn’t want you guys to think (subbing five players at a time) was some kind of pattern,’ Boeheim said.
Nine players saw at least 15 minutes of action, and starting center Craig Forth saw nine minutes of play.
SU’s depth allowed it to play big, little and everywhere in between. At times, Forth and backup center Darryl Watkins sat on the bench, giving way to a running lineup that featured Roberts and 6-foot-6 Dayshawn Wright as the big men.
‘We’re gonna see that a lot in the next couple of games when they have five little guys on the court,’ Boeheim said. ‘Our 7-foot guys can’t chase those guys around, and we don’t want to make them do that. It’s hard for those big guys to play against 6-4 guys.’
Overall, Boeheim was optimistic about the game, saying he favored playing smaller Division II teams instead of last year’s exhibition opponents – Nike Elite and the Harlem Globetrotters.
‘These two games have helped us more than playing a talented AAU team,’ Boeheim said. ‘This is more like what you have to play against. (St. Rose) did some really good things, which I think will help us defensively.’
Published on November 8, 2004 at 12:00 pm
