MBB : Experimental 3-point line adds to Syracuse’s poor showing from outside
Syracuse shot 19 3-pointers. It made only one. Cornell took 23 3-pointers. It made 11.
For anyone wondering how Syracuse’s 67-62 win in Wednesday night’s 2K Sports College Hoops Classic regional final was so close, look no further than the event’s extended 3-point line.
For the tournament, teams are using an experimental 3-point line that extends one foot beyond the NCAA regulation 3-point line to 20 feet, 9 inches.
Whenever the Orange sought to widen its lead in the second half, the Big Red would get open from beyond the arc and nail the shot. Freshman Adam Gore was particularly impressive, connecting on 6-of-10 3-pointers. More than half of Cornell’s points came from the 3.
‘They’re going to make shots,’ Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. ‘But we played so poorly man-to-man in the first half; it wasn’t in the cards for us to try to guard the offense.’
Boeheim said the offense Cornell ran is similar to the Princeton offense that gave the Orange trouble in the regional final last season. Both Cornell and Princeton run an offense that’s predicated on ball movement and shot selection.
But the Orange did make adjustments, particularly finding Gore and not letting him fire away. Gore was held scoreless for the final 12:45 of the game.
‘They really didn’t get a wide open look the last four minutes,’ Boeheim said. ‘That’s good; that’s good defense.’
A lot of the Big Red’s 3-point success came in transition. Cornell was able to capitalize on long rebounds or quick passes and find open men on the wings, whether it was Gore or senior Lenny Collins, who was 4-for-7 from 3-point range.
‘You have to get back on defense,’ senior guard Gerry McNamara said. ‘You can’t run back and get to a spot. You have to run to a man. We gave them a lot of open looks in transition and if you’re going to try to win games by playing defense like that, you’re not going to win many of them.’
Junior guard Louie McCroskey said SU needed to improve its communication in order to combat Cornell’s long-range game. But he said when a team has range like the Big Red, it can really hurt the Orange’s vaunted 2-3 zone.
‘It’s one thing to be able to shoot it, but when you can shoot it from really far, it stretches out our zone,’ McCroskey said.
It didn’t help that Syracuse couldn’t connect on offense. The Orange’s top two marksmen, McNamara and Demetris Nichols, hit nothing but iron. McNamara struggled in particular, failing to hit any of his 10 attempts.
‘(McNamara’s) had bad games. He’s had 0-for-10s, 1-for-10s before. He’ll bounce back,’ Boeheim said. ‘It’s unusual for (McNamara) and (Nichols) both not to shoot well, but that’s basketball.’
McNamara said he had good looks and thought his shots were going to fall, but didn’t. He said the Orange was rushing a lot on offense, and it must slow down and exhibit more patience.
SU was able to get by on Wednesday, but the tournament gets tougher as the Orange heads to New York City, where improved shooting will be paramount.
‘When you don’t make shots, it’s going to be a long night for us,’ Boeheim said. ‘Hopefully we don’t have too many more 1-for-19 games.’
Published on November 9, 2005 at 12:00 pm