Perhaps Terrence Roberts felt entitled to take the shot. So what if the ball was supposed to be force-fed to Hakim Warrick in the paint. Roberts had earned a starting spot. He’d earned adulation and recognition as the most energetic player on the Syracuse basketball team.

He practically had to take the 18-foot jumper early in the second half of Syracuse’s game against Providence. Besides, he was seemingly wide open. But before the basketball even clanked awkwardly off the rim, Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim was out of his chair.

‘Terrence,’ Boeheim yelled from the bench. ‘No jumpshots. You understand?’

Roberts’ job was to rebound, to throw himself all over the court and to play tough defense. He understood.

‘If I make it, he’s happy,’ Roberts said jokingly after the game. ‘If I miss it, I’m on the bench.’

Roberts was key in Syracuse’s 91-66 victory over Providence on Saturday at the Carrier Dome. He scored 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting. He also snatched a career-high 10 rebounds, including five offensive boards, in just 19 total minutes.

But even more impressively, after Boeheim’s verbal reminder, Roberts didn’t even attempt a jumpshot for the rest of the game. Still, he managed eight points from that point on, scoring most of those from offensive rebounds.

That’s exactly why Boeheim inserted him into the starting lineup in the first. In two games since earning the starting role against St. John’s last Wednesday, Roberts has scored 23 points and grabbed 14 rebounds. Saturday was his first 10-rebound game. But it shouldn’t come as a surprise.

All week, assistant coach Rob Murphy led Roberts, Warrick and Craig Forth through a special rebounding drill. Whereas in the past, those three would attempt to grab boards against three other defenders, this week, the three challenged five defenders on the glass.

‘We learned to attack the rim a lot better,’ Roberts said. ‘(The drill) works, we’re starting to get a lot more physical down low.’

Also, Roberts says he watches his Orange teammates shoot in pregame warmups to learn how the SU shots are bouncing off the rim. That way, he’ll be in better position to snag offensive rebounds during the game.

‘I was in a lot of right spots tonight,’ he said.

The extra work is paying off. The Orange (24-5, 11-4 Big East) outrebounded the Friars (12-16, 2-12), 41-28. Granted, the Friars entered the Carrier Dome on Saturday severely undersized, especially with Roberts making the start. Its starting center, Herbert Hill, is only 6 feet, 9 inches. The tallest player on the roster is 6-foot-10 freshman Randall Hanke.

Still, Syracuse will take the effort. Roberts made his mark early, corralling two offensive rebounds in the first two minutes of the game. Later, he’d careen over the scorer’s table in an effort to snatch a loose ball. Despite tumbling over the public address announcer, Roberts still had the wherewithal to call timeout, though it came after he stepped out of bounds.

‘Terrence is a very energetic and emotional person,’ Murphy said. ‘He brings a lot of energy to the floor. When he’s playing like that he’s very successful.’

As he was on Saturday, when he played one of his best all-around games, mostly because of his rebounding ability.

‘There’s nobody more athletic out there that I can’t get every rebound if I try,’ Roberts said. ‘That’s what I did tonight.’

Published on February 27, 2005 at 12:00 pm