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Boeheim’s Army had a new coach and four new players that had never thrown on a Syracuse uniform before — the most since the team’s inception. Despite a slow start and lack of aggressive play from the newly constructed Boeheim’s Army — a team that featured just six minutes of Syracuse legend Eric Devendorf — Jeremy Pope’s team staged a last-period comeback to put away Forces of Seoul on Saturday.

Here are three takeaways from No. 3 Boeheim’s Army’s 65-53 first-round victory over No. 14 Forces of Seoul:

Offense sputters, Seoul takes over 

While the rest of Boeheim’s Army finished the first period 2-for-14 from the field, Malachi Richardson took charge, putting his team up six points. Richardson drained a second-chance, catch-and-shoot three to give him 11 points. Then Devendorf caught a long pass in the far corner. He head-faked a three, then drove past his defender for an uncontested layup. But the issue Pope’s team ran into was that those were the only two baskets within nearly six minutes of game play before a putback shot from Chris McCullough.

Forces of Seoul went on a 14-2 run and took a lead that they’d hold until 6:33 in the third period. The run coincided with a breakdown of Pope’s 2-3 zone, something he learned as a graduate assistant under Washington head coach Mike Hopkins. Forces of Seoul switched their approach from shooting out of the zone — they started the game 1-for-6 from deep — to penetrating inside. Forces of Seoul made their chances in the paint count, as they went 7-of-14 from the floor in the first period.

Richardson hot and cold

Richardson led the way in the first half, showcasing his talent that had fans excited about his third season with Boeheim’s Army. The former Syracuse wing scored just 18 points across two games for Boeheim’s Army in 2020, shooting just 3-for-12 from the field. He finished the first half on Saturday with 11 points across 15 minutes after going 4-for-6 from the field, and he was the only player to find the bottom of the basket from deep.

But as the scoreboard changed from the second to the third period, Richardson faded. While he went perfect at the charity stripe, Richardson wasn’t the dominating presence that led the Army in the first half. He finished the second half with eight points and didn’t make a shot from deep until the Elam Ending. He finished with 19 points and four three-pointers.

New members of the Army 

Tyrese Rice was brought in to hold down the point guard spot, something the Belbey brothers, Shaun and Kevin, knew was a need they hadn’t properly filled in past years. He started off slow, going just 2-for-7 from the field in 14 minutes. But as the final minutes before the Elam Ending dwindled down, Rice showcased why he was added to Boeheim’s Army.

Rice’s three-point shot with six minutes remaining in the fourth period capped off a 10-0 run by Boeheim’s Army. His final three-point shot came from deep in the left corner. Rice collected the jump pass from D.J. Kennedy, gathered himself and drained the wide-open look to send Boeheim’s Army to the second round.

Prior to tip off on ESPN’s broadcast, Seth Greenberg called Kennedy “the LeBron James of the TBT.” He started for Boeheim’s Army after being one of their highest-profile additions before the tournament. But across 26 minutes, he only scored three points, including just one in the first half after going 1-for-4 from the charity stripe. Kennedy didn’t score his first field goal until a wide-open dunk placed Boeheim’s Army up 53-52 in the midst of the fourth period.

As the final seconds ticked off in the third period, Forces of Seoul was up by seven. DeAndre Kane tried to cross over a defender to find an opening for a last-second three pointer. But he lost grip on the ball and was unable to get a shot off. Heading back to the bench, he stared down at his hands and shook his head. Four rebounds and four straight points in the third period weren’t enough for the forward.

Published on July 24, 2021 at 2:22 pm

Contact Anthony: aalandt@syr.edu | @anthonyalandt