PHILADELPHIA – Forget the 10 shots Demetris Nichols already missed during the game. When it mattered, he had the ball in his hands with a chance to tie the game for Syracuse and an open look in front of him.

‘I can’t ask for a better shot,’ Nichols said. ‘I live to take that shot.’

Nichols’ last-second 3-pointer from the corner off an in-bounds pass from Josh Wright banked off the rim and fell to Andy Rautins. Rautins turned around, dribbled out beyond the arc and threw up a desperation shot. It missed, too.

‘You’re going to have an off night sometimes,’ Rautins said.

The Orange, which shot 40.9 percent from deep during its five-game winning streak, only made 9-of-35 from 3-point range Saturday. The missed shots eventually caught up to Syracuse in its 78-75 loss to Villanova at the Wachovia Center Saturday in front of 18,403 fans, snapping SU’s five-game run.

The loss ensures Syracuse (21-9, 10-6) will play at 2 p.m. on Wednesday in the first round of the Big East tournament against the 12th seed, Connecticut. SU and UConn split two games this season, with the home team winning each.

On Saturday, Syracuse was in it until the very end, despite Nichols and Rautins combining for only 18 points and shooting a ghastly 4-for-21 from beyond the arc. Eric Devendorf scored a career-high 33 points and Josh Wright and Paul Harris tallied eight apiece.

Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim was asked of his team’s shot selection after the game and stood by his shooters, Nichols and Rautins.

‘Was it too many the last game?’ Boeheim questioned a reporter. ‘Did you second-guess it the last game? … Then don’t second-guess it now. If you don’t think we shot it too much then, don’t think we shot it too much now. That’s how we won those games. That’s how we’re going to win.’

Amazingly, Nichols and Rautins had chances to tie the game only because of a bizarre intentional foul call on Villanova’s Dante Cunningham with 3.9 seconds left. The Wildcats (21-9, 9-7) led by six, 78-72, when Wright was fouled by Curtis Sumpter, sending him to the line for one free throw plus the bonus.

Wright made both free throws, but on the second one referees called a foul on Cunningham. After a prolonged discussion, the officials charged Cunningham with an intentional foul, sending Nichols to the line for two and awarding Syracuse possession of the ball following the shots.

Villanova head coach Jay Wright was irate with the late, potentially game-changing call, but he restrained himself from doing something he’d later regret, he said.

‘I saw the tape. I see what the referee thought he saw,’ Wright said. ‘I understand. I don’t agree with it, but I understand it. It was a swim move that is an illegal move. But he didn’t hit the guy and it’s not an intentional foul.’

Boeheim said he didn’t ask the referees about the call and he would not comment on it.

‘I thought he called a technical,’ Nichols said. ‘It’s the ref’s call.’

Nichols missed the first free throw off the intentional foul, but made the second, closing the gap to three points. On the in-bounds play, he missed an open 3-pointer from the corner and Rautins’ last-ditch attempt failed, too – sending a sigh of relief through the home crowd – and the Orange home with a bittersweet loss.

‘It’s just how the ball rolls sometimes,’ Devendorf said. ‘People don’t make shots. D-Nic (Nichols) and Andy have played great through the season. You can’t fault them at all.’

Villanova shot 90.6 percent from the free-throw line (29-of-32) to the Orange’s 64 percent (16-of-25). Darryl Watkins and Terrence Roberts scored six points combined.

The shots fell for Devendorf Saturday. In fact, the rest of the team outscored Devendorf by only nine points. He was the Orange’s lone consistent scoring threat during the game and shot 12-of-22 from the field. The 33 points best a previous career-high of 27, set earlier in the season against DePaul.

Devendorf paced the Orange during the first half, as he did all game. However, after the sophomore guard picked up his third foul with 6:09 remaining in the first half, the Orange needed to find scoring from other sources. When Devendorf left the game, SU held a one-point advantage, 23-22. Going into the locker room, the Orange led 35-31, punctuated by a thunderous Harris dunk as time expired.

Rautins and Nichols made two 3’s in the second half, both in the final minute of the game to keep Syracuse alive. But it was too little, too late.

Said Devendorf: ‘The shots didn’t fall today, but they’re going to fall in the next gam

Published on March 4, 2007 at 12:00 pm