Syracuse Basketball Preview

The 2009-10 Syracuse University Men's Basketball Team began its season with Midnight Madness at the Carrier Dome on Oct. 16. The atmosphere in the Dome was still electric despite the absence of the three starters who led the team to the Sweet 16 last year.

Former point guard Jonny Flynn leaves large Nikes to fill while he's in Minnesota for his rookie season. Based on their first game against California State University of Los Angeles, the S.U. faithful will count on Jamesville-DeWitt High School's very own Brandon Triche to fill Flynn's role.

In an interview with The Post-Standard, Triche said that he is going to use his outside shooting game to make it easier to get to the basket. He put that theory into practice in the first preseason game, where he started and had eight points, three assists, and committed zero turnovers.

Lamar Kearse, a senior point guard at J-DHS, agrees with Triche's plan. "He will have a really good year if he can hit his jump shots," he said. "He is going to do more than people expect him to do," said Kearse. "He is a good team leader. He doesn't say a lot but he leads by example. He also gives 100 percent all the time." Kearse would know; they did win consecutive state championships together.

Nancy Raicht, biology teacher at J-DHS and long time Syracuse basketball fan, believes the S.U. team will have another successful season this year. "Hopefully the talent that is there can step up to the plate. Brandon Triche has the potential to be a strong contributor," she says.

Another fan, sophomore Josh Fitzgibbons agrees. "We have a strong base of players that just need to penetrate and dump it off to the baseline then take it to the rack. That's how they will win." He also said that they have all the tools that it takes to become a championship team: good coaching and players. He is excited for the season and to be there to watch the games: "I love my Dome!"

The departure of Eric Devendorf and Paul Harris leaves questions about the Orange's ability to score a lot of points. But Triche is only one of several talented recruits. Wesley Johnson, a highly touted transfer from Iowa State, is expected to fill that scoring void.

"I think they are underrated and will surprise a lot of teams," said Lawrence Stroh, engineering teacher at J-DHS. He believes Johnson and James Southerland have the potential to contribute more than Devendorf and Harris.

Theresa Hernandez, a senior at J-DHS thinks that this team could make it to the second or third round of the NCAA Tournament this year. But she also thinks they might make it even further next season because they are so young this year. "Their starters this year are more balanced than last year. Last year everyone was playing out of position while this year's team will have more structure," she said. She wants to attend the game against Canisius College to watch former teammates Alshawn Hymes and Triche play against each other.

Lucas Johnson, sophomore at J-DHS said that in his opinion, because of the new leadership that Triche brings to the team and the returning leaders Arinze Onuaku, Rick Jackson, and Andy Rautins, Syracuse will have another successful season. "With Wesley and Brandon coming to the team this season it will fill the holes left in the team by Flynn, Harris, and Devendorf."

John Centra, junior at J-DHS said, "Of course they will return to the sweet sixteen this season because of the addition of Brandon and the fact that Coach Boeheim is cool. I will be at every home game wearing a Brandon Triche jersey!"

In an interview with ESPN about Johnson, Jim Boeheim, coach of the Orange, said that, "He's not a cocky kid, but he's a confident kid." He also went on to say that he doesn't expect Johnson to dominate in the first two games, because when a player is off for a year it takes time to adjust to the flow of the game again. Johnson was ineligible to play last season due to his transfer from Iowa State.

Rautins, starting guard for the Orange and former guard at J-DHS, said that Johnson has great athletic ability to go with his outstanding leadership. "He's a pro. He's got the body of a pro. He's got all the tools. There is a buzz about him here." Johnson averaged about twelve points per game for Iowa State in the 2007-2008 season, according to ESPN.com.

With all the changes in the starting lineup, returning to the sweet sixteen is going to be a tough task. With the hopes of the city on their shoulders, will the new players be able to respond?

For the team's schedule visit:
S.U.'s schedule