Anthony’s dominant effort sends SU to title game
NEW ORLEANS — Whatever was said, Carmelo Anthony decided it needed no answer. A career-high 33 points and 14 rebounds, he figured, said it all.
So when Texas coach Rick Barnes barked at Anthony each time he came down the court in the second half Saturday, Anthony declined to indulge him in conversation.
“I don’t really know what he was saying,” Anthony said. “I was just laughing at him.”
Indeed, Anthony’s ravaging of Texas’ defense was laughable. He carried the No. 3-seeded Syracuse men’s basketball team to a 95-84 win over No. 1 Texas in front of 54,432 at the Louisiana Superdome. The win vaulted Syracuse (29-5) into the national championship game for the first time since 1996.
The Orangemen face Kansas here tonight at 9:22. The Jayhawks advanced by pummeling Marquette, 91-64, before SU’s game Saturday.
“It doesn’t get much better than this,” Anthony said. “Playing in the national championship game? That’s like the biggest event besides the Super Bowl.”
Anthony had plenty of help Saturday, as four Orangemen scored in double figures. Brandon Mouton led Texas (26-7) with 25 points.
As the final seconds ticked off the clock, Anthony, standing near the Texas bench, pumped his fists and looked toward the crowd. He saw a band of orange-clad fans bouncing up and down. Ten minutes after the game, chants of “Let’s Go Orange!” rang through the Superdome’s bowels.
Anthony had given fans good reason to celebrate. He easily discarded several Texas defenders in reaching the 30-point plateau for the first time since March 9, when Syracuse beat Rutgers in its regular-season finale.
Texas guard Royal Ivey, a member of the Big 12’s All-Defensive Team, failed to slow Anthony, allowing him to reach 20 points with 18 minutes left in the game. Midway through the second half, Barnes switched and tried Mouton, who quickly fouled Anthony twice in one possession.
“I thought they’d put a bigger guy on me, rough me up a bit and try to get five fast fouls on me,” Anthony said. “They didn’t do that, though.”
Instead, the 6-foot-8 Anthony muscled into position for easy baskets. Other times, Anthony simply pulled up and extended over Ivey (6-3) and Mouton (6-4).
“He’s a great player,” Mouton said. “He knows how to use his body to get shots. But it’s more than a one-man show. They play well as a team.”
That showed during a key second-half run. It started, innocently enough, with two free throws from Josh Pace to give SU a 63-61 lead. Then came a Gerry McNamara 3. Then an awe-inspiring Hakim Warrick dunk. Next a McNamara jumper, and the Orangemen had taken a 70-63 lead.
“We have other guys that are really capable, guys that can make plays,” SU head coach Jim Boeheim said. “You know, defenses look for him so much that we do give some opportunities to other guys.”
Anthony still added the exclamation point, hitting a jumper over Sydmill Harris to push the SU lead to 76-66. On the next possession, he shuffled around Mouton for a two-handed slam, giving Syracuse a 12-point lead, its largest to that point.
Texas made one final push, closing the score to 85-81 with 1:06 left after a Brian Boddicker 3-pointer. But Anthony’s layup with 40 seconds remaining extended the SU advantage to seven, putting the game out of reach.
“So much for the 2-3 zone,” Boeheim said. “I knew that it would be an offensive game. Texas can score points against any defense. We haven’t really been sharp in the tournament on the offensive end. Tonight, we were right from the beginning.”
Syracuse’s 55-percent first-half shooting could have finished Texas early. But 20 first-half points from Mouton kept the Longhorns close, and SU led just 48-45 at the break.
Mouton scored the Longhorns’ first 10 points and first five field goals. With 9:44 remaining in the first half, Texas trailed, 28-20. At that time, no Longhorn besides Mouton (15 points) and Ford (5) had scored.
SU, meanwhile, touted a balanced first-half attack led by 16 from Anthony. Warrick and McNamara added 10 apiece.
“People forget about our other weapons,” SU guard Billy Edelin said. “That works to our advantage.”
But Anthony proved to be the biggest advantage.
“He carried us,” McNamara said. “Hopefully he can do it again (tonight).”
Published on April 6, 2003 at 12:00 pm