A fan sitting courtside had to clear his hands. He had a beer in one hand, a cell phone in the other and Gerry McNamara just hit his fourth 3-pointer to give the Orange the lead right in front of him. McNamara turned around in excitement with his hands raised, and the courtside fan wanted a piece of the excitement. McNamara slapped the fan’s hand and continued in celebration.

With a primetime game and the bright lines shining, McNamara did what he’s done many times during his career: rise to the occasion.

The senior guard finished with 30 points on 10-of-16 shooting – four of which were 3-pointers – in the Orange’s 79-66 win over Louisville on Saturday. It was his best performance since scoring 38 against Davidson on Dec. 18 and his most efficient shooting night of the season.

‘This was the first game in a long time that’s he’s really gotten some pretty good looks at the basket,’ Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. ‘The guys found him and looked for him. I think we got him open pretty well all night.’

McNamara was able to get started early, something that hasn’t been as easy in the past few games. The Orange found him in transition on a few occasions, and McNamara did a masterful job coming around screens, quickly setting his feet and knocking the shot down. Aware of this, McNamara made sure to recognize the big men after the game.

‘Our big guys played great defensively and it gave us open looks on the other end,’ McNamara said. ‘I came down on transition and Terrence (Roberts) set me some great screens. Arinze (Onuaku) got me. Matt (Gorman) got me. (Darryl Watkins) got me. When I find looks and I’m open, I’m going to hit most of them.’

But it’s the entire team who thrives when McNamara is playing well. McNamara has scored more than 20 points seven times this season. Each time, the Orange won. During his career, the Orange is 26-5 when he eclipses 20 points.

The thinking for SU all season has been it’ll go as far as the big men take them. While there’s truth to it, McNamara is the player that receives the bulk of defensive attention. When he’s able to score despite the pressure, the Orange prosper.

‘When Gerry is making shots, that bumps us up,’ freshman guard Eric Devendorf said. ‘He made some shots, and then I wanted to make some shots.’

The performance was consistent with McNamara throughout his career. He’s generally been able to pick his game up when the Orange needs it. With SU on the NCAA Tournament bubble and Gerry in particular struggling – he’s averaged 11.5 points in his past four games and 14.8 points in Big East games, the lowest since his freshman season – Saturday night’s performance was a relief.

When he departed the game with 25 seconds left, McNamara high-fived everyone around the bench. After receiving treatment in the locker room after the game, he was like a politician, shaking hands with managers and kissing mothers.

‘It makes me feel good because we needed it,’ McNamara said. ‘We needed a win, and we got it. That’s the best thing about it. We’re sitting here with our backs to the wall and we get it. That’s important.’

Published on February 19, 2006 at 12:00 pm