For two years, Kout Ayol has watched Kueth Duany.

Duany gives the high school junior, who like himself is a Sudan native, a ticket to every game. But with the buzz surrounding the Syracuse men’s basketball team, even the team’s starting guard could not help out a friend with seats at the Final Four.

Instead, Ayol showed up at Wednesday’s public send-off to wish the team luck in New Orleans, where they will play Texas on Saturday night in the Louisiana Superdome. About 3,000, cloaked in Gerry McNamara jerseys, Final Four T-shirts and Syracuse sweat shirts, joined Ayol in his efforts at Manley Field House.

The Syracuse University pep-band greeted fans entering the field house while cheerleaders and workers distributed ‘Final Four Bound’ signs.

‘Rumor has it, there are some Orangemen fans in the house,’ SU’s play-by-play announcer Mark Johnson said jokingly to the crowd that gathered on and around Manley’s basketball court.

Teresa Broom, one of many fans who brought a poster, wrote each player’s name on a star, which she glued to a wooden stick and distributed to the crowd. She gave Ayol, a Nottingham High student, one with Duany’s name.

Tish Baxter, a freshman pole vaulter on SU’s track and field team, had a Final Four ticket she was looking to sell. Baxter filtered through the crowd asking ‘who needs one?’ She found no offers.

Meanwhile, as fans buzzed about Syracuse’s chances against Texas, players sat backstage. Freshman Matt Gorman joked with Otto the Orange. Forward Carmelo Anthony talked on his cell phone while sipping a jug of Sunny Delight. A well-wisher asked associate head coach Bernie Fine, ‘How’s it going?’ Fine offered no reply.

Finally, Johnson introduced each player, starting with walk-on Tyrone Albright and ending with Duany, SU’s lone senior. Johnson hardly started freshman Anthony’s introduction before the chant, ‘One more year,’ echoed through the building.

As SU Director of Athletics Jake Crouthamel stepped to the podium, some people, including SU sophomore Paul Connors, started booing.

‘He doesn’t do anything for the fans,’ Connors said.

Another onlooker yelled for Crouthamel to ‘Get off the stage.’

But fans applauded as head coach Jim Boeheim stood to speak.

‘The thing that’s special about this year,’ Boeheim said, ‘is that our fans are back.

‘We’re going down [to New Orleans] to play two games.’

Later, players stepped off the stage and exited through the back of Manley Field House as fans percolated out.

As the team’s bus fumed toward Hancock International Airport, Boeheim waved through the tinted window.

He even cracked a smile.

Published on April 2, 2003 at 12:00 pm