Men's Basketball Comes from Behind to Defeat Cornell, 67-62

Wednesday, November 9

Carrier Dome

8:00 p.m.

Syracuse University

Cornell

Terrence Roberts led the way with 19 points and 14 rebounds.

Men's Basketball Comes from Behind to Defeat Cornell, 67-62

11/9/2005 10:42:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

SU Player Quotes

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Junior forward Terrence Roberts recorded the second double-double of his career with 19 points and a career-high 14 rebounds to help No. 16-ranked Syracuse (2-0) to a 67-62 come-from-behind victory against Cornell in the regional final of the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic in front of 17,188 at the Carrier Dome. Roberts, who also had a personal-best five steals, was honored after the game as the Syracuse Regional's Most Valuable Player. SU advances to the tournament semifinals against the winner of the Lubbock Regional on Nov. 17, in New York City's Madison Square Garden. Syracuse is the tournament's defending champion.

With Cornell (1-1) clinging to a 55-52 lead with 6:01 remaining in the contest, Syracuse freshman guard Eric Devendorf stepped up with three strong drives to the basket. All three plays were nifty one-on-one moves to the hoop which helped put the Orange back on top, 62-57, with 2:33 remaining.

Junior guard Louie McCroskey buried two shots from the free-throw line to increase the Orange margin to seven points (64-57) with 1:17 left. Senior guard Gerry McNamara connected on three of his game-high 13 made free throws down the stretch and finished 13-of-14 from the charity stripe overall. Cornell would never get closer than five points. Lenny Collins knocked down his fourth three-pointer of the game for the Big Red at the buzzer to set the final score at 67-62.

McNamara, known for his deadly three-point shot, was 0-for-10 from beyond the arc, but still finished with 17 points. Junior forward Demetris Nichols tallied 11 points and a career-high 10 rebounds. It was the first double-double of his career.

Junior center Darryl Watkins contributed inside for the Orange with nine boards. He was one block shy of tying Etan Thomas' school record of nine blocked shots in a game. Watkins finished with a game-high eight blocks.

SU led 9-0 early in the first half thanks to some key plays by members of its junior class. Nichols nailed a long three-pointer. McCroskey scored off a putback and Watkins followed up a teammate's missed layup to give SU a 7-0 lead. McNamara's first trip to the free-throw line resulted in two more points for the Orange and a 9-0 lead within the game's first four minutes.

A pair of Cornell guards got hot and pulled the Big Red even, 20-20, with 6:10 remaining in the first half. Collins and freshman Adam Gore combined for 17 points, including two three's by Gore during an 11-minute spurt that ignited a 20-11 Cornell run. Junior forward/center Andrew Naeve added a free throw and a dunk during the important stretch.

During the final six minutes of the half, Syracuse outscored the Big Red, 15-5. The Orange held a 35-25 lead with 37 seconds remaining before halftime. Roberts scored six points, McNamara had four and Watkins completed a three-point play off an offensive rebound to help Syracuse regain the lead. Naeve hit two free throws with five seconds remaining and the teams headed to the lockerroom with the Orange ahead by eight, 35-27.

Cornell hit 44 percent of its field goals in the second half (11-of-25) and took its first lead of the night (47-44) at the 12-minute mark after Gore drained his sixth trey of the night, completing the third consecutive trip down the floor in which the Big Red nailed a three-pointer. Gore finished with a game-high 22 points. He sank eight-of-12 shots from the floor, including a six-for-10 performance from three-point land.

Collins and his jump shot gave Cornell its two largest leads of the night, 50-46, with 9:50 to play, and 52-48 at the 9:04 mark.

Roberts would help bring Syracuse back. He dunked the ball off an assist from Devendorf to pull SU to within two, 52-50. That was with 8:21 remaining. Next, he hit a 15-footer with 7:39 remaining to cut into Cornell's lead, 53-52. Roberts gave his Orange the lead for good with 4:38 on the clock when he banked in his own rebound from the left block. That gave SU a 56-55 edge.

In addition to Gore's 22-point performance, Collins ended up with 20 points and seven rebounds in 40 minutes for the Big Red. Naeve was a force with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Earlier in the night in the consolation game of the Syracuse Regional, Bethune-Cookman defeated St. Francis (Pa.), 63-52, in overtime. The Wildcats outscored the Red Flash, 17-6, during the extra session.