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After a 3-pointer from the Golden Eagles’ Dwight Buycks, the defending TBT champions needed one more possession to end the game on Saturday. But on the other side, Boeheim’s Army was only one point away from the target score as well.

And with semifinal hopes looming on whichever team put the ball in the basket first, BA turned to its most impactful player of the night: Tyrese Rice. 

Rice had already hit two free throws to give Boeheim’s Army its first lead of the entire game earlier in the Elam Ending. Now, with one defender in front of him, Rice had a chance to hit the final dagger. 

Like so many other plays during the game, Rice patiently dribbled the ball between his legs, inching himself toward the lane as he awaited an opening. With his eyes focused on the defender and his movements, Rice finally cut left and heaved up a floater from inside the paint. 

The former Boston College star found the bottom of the net, sending a team of mostly Syracuse alumni to their second semifinal appearance in team history. 

“Tyrese Rice is forever Orange now,” Malachi Richardson said postgame.

After scoring 20 points in No. 3 seed Boeheim’s Army’s opening win over Forces of Seoul, Rice matched that total again in a comeback, upset win over the top-seeded Golden Eagles. He shot 57% from the field on 14 attempts and hit two 3-pointers. 

In the first quarter, however, Rice and Boeheim’s Army struggled as a whole offensively. Despite getting six offensive rebounds and creating open shot opportunities, most of BA’s attempts were unable to find the bottom of the net. They trailed by six heading into the second period. 

Rice was also quiet during the first quarter, missing one 3-point attempt before being substituted out of the game for Keifer Sykes. But the substitution is something that the team has made in past games, as head coach Jeremy Pope has played every player in every game during the tournament.

“One through 10, everyone’s been a starter. Everyone’s been the man on the team at some point in their career,” guard Eric Devendorf said in a press conference before the game. “We trust each other. We’re confident in each other.”

Boeheim’s Army finished the first quarter with only one make from behind-the-arc, which came from Devendorf near the conclusion of the period. At the start of the second quarter, Boeheim’s Army depth would be tested as Rice checked back into the game for Devendorf after the BA veteran made two free throws.

Immediately after entering the game, Rice began controlling Boeheim’s Army’s offense. On each possession, Rice brought the ball up, positioning himself at the top of the key and dribbling until something opened up.

On most possessions throughout the second quarter, nothing was open because of the Golden Eagles’ aggressive man-to-man look. But Rice started to isolate himself, using his speed and handles to create space. It didn’t matter which defender was in front of Rice, he typically found a way to beat them or step back for an open shot opportunity. 

For Rice’s first basket of the game, he took on the Golden Eagles’ most prolific defender, Elgin Cook, who finished with three steals and a block. Rice slowly brought the ball up the left wing with six minutes left in the second quarter, allowing Cook to get close to him with the ball. 

As Cook tried to swipe the ball out of Rice’s hands, Rice stuttered and spun right, sending Cook to the ground while running toward the basket. With another defender ahead of him, Rice catapulted a floater high into the air, finding the net for the score.

“I felt confident,” Rice said about his shooting performance. “My confidence isn’t ever going to go away. I’m going to go there and play the only way I know how.”

By the end of the first half, Rice had six points, all from floaters or step-backs against the Golden Eagles’ faltering defense. Instead of isolating himself for open shots like he did in the first half, Rice was able to score from behind-the-arc with the help of one of his teammates, D.J. Kennedy, in the second half. 

Rice did most of his work inside, as six of his eight baskets were 2-pointers. Courtesy of Ben Solomon

On BA’s second possession of the last half, Rice made his way to the left wing before passing to Kennedy, who was backing down a defender in the post. Kennedy faked a drive into the lane and quickly passed back to Rice, who drained the 3. On the ensuing possession, BA ran the same play from the opposite side, and Rice delivered the same result to bring Boeheim’s Army within two.

“It served as a boost,” Richardson said about the 3s. “The bench is up screaming. It changed the trajectory of the game.”

But after Rice’s success, the Golden Eagles’ offense started to heat up as well, going on a 10-0 run at the end of the third quarter. The team was able to fight back because of their ability to get offensive rebounds, which totaled 18 by the end of the afternoon, Rice said.  

“We stayed with it the whole game,” Rice said. “Tyler Lydon in 11 minutes had four offensive rebounds. Those are extra shots, which helped us win the game.”

The beginning of Boeheim’s Army’s late comeback was sparked by two 3-pointers from Richardson as the game approached the Elam Ending. At the start of the Elam Ending, Rice, who had given facilitating duties to Sykes, took over again with 10 points as the target for BA.

Similar to the second quarter, Rice wasn’t focused on trying to hit from deep. He isolated himself, studying his defender as he dribbled the ball between his legs. 

Trailing by two, Rice drove hard to the basket past his defender and on a defensive miscommunication from the Golden Eagles, he had an open lane to the basket. Rice laid it in to tie the game up. 

Then, he got to the free throw line on the ensuing possession, hitting both shots before the final floater sealed the game. Out of Boeheim’s Army’s last 11 points, Rice had 10. 

“We understand that the game isn’t pretty,” Rice said. “When it comes down to it, you have to be able to close out.”

Published on July 31, 2021 at 5:59 pm

Contact Anish: asvasude@syr.edu | @anish_vasu