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Syracuse University
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vs. Kansas<br> (NCAA Finals)
NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!!!
4/7/2003 11:39:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Syracuse Coach and Player Quotes
Photo gallery from National Championship game
NEW ORLEANS - Sophomore #Hakim Warrick# knocked a Michael Lee three-point attempt out of bounds with 1.5 seconds left on the clock to help Syracuse hold on to win its first NCAA Championship, 81-78, against Kansas at New Orleans' Superdome. Freshman #Carmelo Anthony#, who finished the game with 20 points and 10 rebounds, earned the Final Four Most Outstanding Player award.
The title is the first in program history, and the first for 27-year head coach #Jim Boeheim#. Boeheim wins the championship in his third try in the title game. The win was his 38th in the NCAA Tournament, and the 653rd of his career.
SU's 53 first-half points was the most in an opening period by a team in a championship game. The Orangemen's 11 three-point field goals ties for the second-most in a championship game. Kentucky made 12 trifectas against Syracuse in 1996. Syracuse hit 58.1 percent (18-of-13) of its three-pointers, the third-highest two-game Final Four percentage, and its 61.1 percent shooting from three-point range (11-of-18) in the title game ranks second-highest in a championship game behind Indiana's 63.6 percent (7-of-11) against SU in 1987. On the defensive end, Syracuse's seven team blocks equals the most in a championship game and is matched by six other teams.
Freshman #Gerry McNamara#'s 60.0 three-point percentage (6-of-10) ranks as the third-highest in a championship game with a minimum of five made. (The top mark is 5-of-7, 71.4 percent, by Donald Williams of North Carolina in the 1993 title game.) McNamara's nine three-pointers in the Final Four tied for the second-most in a two-game series behind Williams' 10 for UNC in 1993.
The Orange led by as many as 18 points in the first half, and held an 11-point lead, 53-42, heading into the second half. Kansas cut the edge to three, 55-52, less than three minutes into the session. Anthony started an 11-2 SU run that gave the Orange a 72-60 edge at the 7:32 mark. The Jayhawks used a 14-4 tear to pull within two, 80-78, with 40 seconds left to play. Senior #Kueth Duany# split a pair of free throws to push the lead to three with 24 seconds on the clock. After Warrick missed two at the foul line, his reaching block secured the national championship for the Orangemen.
McNamara tied the Syracuse NCAA Tournament record with six made three-pointers, all in the first half, for his 18 points. He finished the game 6-of-10 from beyond the arc, one made trey away from tying the NCAA championship game record of seven, and was named to the All-Tournament team. Anthony finished three assists shy of a triple-double with 20 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high seven helpers. Freshman #Billy Edelin# chipped in 12 points and had three steals off the bench. Duany scored 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting and grabbed four rebounds. Sophomore #Josh Pace# had eight points, eight rebounds and three steals. Warrick finished with six points and two rebounds, and sophomore #Craig Forth# had six points, three boards, and three blocks. Junior #Jeremy McNeil# recorded five rebounds and two blocks. Syracuse finished with a 47.6 shooting percentage (30-of-63), and shot 11-of-18 (61.1 percent) from three-point range.
McNamara's 18 three-pointers in the six tournament games broke the Syracuse tournament record set by Greg Monroe who had 13 in 1987. SU's 76.9 percent shooting from beyond the arc (10-of-13) in the first half was its best three-point shotting half of the season by percentage.
The Orangemen are the first No. 3 seed to win a national championship since Michigan in 1989. Indiana (1981) was the only other No. 3 seed to win a title since seedings began in 1979. Syracuse is the first team since Villanova in 1985 to be unranked in the preseason AP poll and win the national championship, and only the second team since 1975 to achieve the feat. SU is the third straight East Regional champion to win the title (Duke, 2001; Maryland, 2002).
The Orangemen finish the season with a 30-5 overall record, and for the first time in the program's history, they win the national championship.
