#6/#7 Men's Basketball Defeats Seton Hall, 75-50, at the Dome

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Junior guard Gerry McNamara scored a game-high 23 points, had four assists and three steals to help No. 6/7 Syracuse to a 75-50 victory against Seton Hall in front of a crowd of 25,578 at the Carrier Dome on Jan. 8. The win improved the Orange's record to 15-1, 2-0 in the BIG EAST Conference.

Senior center Craig Forth scored the game's first basket nearly three minutes into the game and Syracuse never let go of its lead the rest of the night. The Orange were up by as many as 12 points (25-13) at the 5:56 mark of the first half thanks to three tough plays by McNamara and a three-point play by junior guard Billy Edelin.

With 9:26 remaining in the first half, McNamara used a cross-over dribble to separate himself from his defender and pulled up for a three-pointer to give SU a 16-9 lead. After Seton Hall's John Allen converted a layup off a pass from Justin Cerasoli, McNamara answered right back with another three and the Orange led 19-11 at 7:08. Edelin got fouled while going up for a layup. He made the shot and the ensuing free throw to give Syracuse a 22-11 lead.

SHU's Allen made a tough shot in the lane to cut the Orange's lead to 22-13, but McNamara stuck it to the Pirates again when he took a pass from sophomore forward Terrence Roberts on the run, used his body to shield the defender and laid the ball in the basket. He was fouled on the play and sank his free throw to give SU a 25-13 lead.

Senior forward Hakim Warrick made a three-pointer from the top of the key to give Syracuse a 30-19 advantage with four minutes remaining in the half. He made a leaner and then dished off to Roberts, who muscled his way to the basket for a 34-21 Syracuse lead. McNamara was fouled while bringing the ball up the floor in the closing seconds of the first half. He made both free throws to give the Orange a 36-22 lead at halftime.

The SU defense forced Seton Hall into 11 first-half turnovers and by the time it was all over, the Pirates had coughed it up a total of 20 times for the game.

McNamara came out shooting in the second half. He made back-to-back three-pointers by the 16:27 mark and increased the Syracuse margin to 18 points (42-24). He dished to Forth for a dunk and then converted two free throws to put SU up by 22 (48-26) by the 13:27 mark.

The closest Seton Hall came was within 16 points (51-35) with 10:07 remaining when Donald Copeland canned one of his team-high three three-pointers. With 2:13 left, Syracuse had distanced itself by 26 points after two made free throws by Roberts.

Warrick finished the game with 14 points and a game-high nine rebounds. Forth hit double figures for the third time this season with 10 points. McNamara shot 7-for-11 from the field, including four-of-seven from three-point range.

It was the fourth time this year that Syracuse held an opponent to fewer than 55 points. Kelly Whitney was Seton Hall's leading scorer with 10 points. The Pirates, who are now 8-5 on the season and 0-2 in the BIG EAST, shot 36 percent from the field (19-of-53) against the Orange.

SU takes to the court again on Monday, Jan. 10, at Notre Dame. The Irish are riding a six-game winning streak and bring a 9-2 record and 1-0 BIG EAST mark into the matchup with Syracuse, which will be televised LIVE by ESPN at 7 p.m.