Syracuse Beats Cal State Los Angeles In Final Exhibition Game, 99-51

Sunday, November 5

Carrier Dome

2:00 p.m.

Syracuse University

Cal State-Los Angeles (exhibition)

Jim Boeheim and Stevie Thompson chat before Sunday's exhibition.

Syracuse Beats Cal State Los Angeles In Final Exhibition Game, 99-51

11/5/2006 4:33:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Syracuse Player Quotes

Coach Stevie Thompson Quotes

Syracuse, N.Y- Syracuse won its final tune-up game before the regular season, beating Cal State Los Angeles, 99-51, on Sunday, November 5 in front of 8,306 fans at the Carrier Dome. The game was a homecoming for Syracuse legend Stephen Thompson, the seventh-leading scorer in Syracuse basketball history and the head coach of the Golden Eagles.

Senior forward Demetris Nichols led all scorers with 18 points and added nine rebounds and three assists. Senior forward Darryl Watkins recorded a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Watkins also had six blocks. Freshman forward Paul Harris scored eight points and pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds. Syracuse had 51 points off the bench, led by sophomore forward Andy Rautins with 13 points and freshman forward Mike Jones, who added 14. The duo also combined for five of Syracuse's eight three-point field goals.

Syracuse opened the game with an 11-4 lead. Nichols got things started with a three pointer from the top of the arc and had a fastbreak dunk minutes later. Jones poured in four points in 25 seconds with a jumper from the elbow, followed by a layup off a missed fastbreak layup by sophomore guard Eric Devendorf, who intercepted a pass at midcourt, to put the Orange up by eight.

With seven minutes left in the half, Syracuse went on an 14-0 run to more than double its lead, 39-18. Junior guard Josh Wright pulled down a defensive rebound and pushed the ball up court to Nichols who finished the play with a dunk. Devendorf hit a wide-open three from the left side and freshman guard Paul Harris got into the scoring action, following a missed three pointer by Wright with a layup.

Jones hit a three pointer with ten seconds left in the half to extend Syracuse's lead to 20 points at the break, 47-27. Nichols led all scorers with 11 points, followed by Watkins with nine. Syracuse forced 12 Cal State turnovers, which it turned into 14 points. The Orange's size advantage played a big factor as it outrebounded the Golden Eagles, 31-12. Syracuse had 15 offensive rebounds, 24 points in the paint and 21 second chance points.

The Orange opened the second half the same way it ended the first, with a big run. Syracuse went on a 22-3 stretch and its lead swelled to 69-31. Defense sparked Syracuse as Wright intercepted a pass at the top of the key and found senior forward Terrence Roberts streaking down the middle of the court for a layup. Sophomore forward Andy Rautins hit back-to-back threes and the Orange had six more points in the paint during the six-minute span. Rautins continued his hot shooting from the outside with another three at 11:47 and Jones made one of his own on the Orange's next trip down the court to push Syracuse's lead to more than 40 points, 75-33.

Syracuse had solid contributions from its freshmen in their second games. Harris came up with a steal at 10:31 and led a three-on-one fast break down the center of the court. He threw a bounce pass to Jones on the left side who threw down a two-handed dunk. Rautins stole the ball on Cal State's next possession and threw an outlet pass to freshman forward Devin Brennan-McBride who laid in his first two points at Syracuse. Brennan-McBride finished with eight points.

Syracuse turned in another solid defensive effort, forcing 25 turnovers and blocking 13 shots. Senior forward Matt Gorman followed his nine-block performance against Bryant on Wednesday with four more against Cal State. The Orange had 60 rebounds and held the Golden Eagles to just 28 percent shooting from the field.

Syracuse opens the 2006-07 regular season as the hosts of the BCA Invitational next weekend. The Orange takes on St. Francis (N.Y.) Friday at 8:00 p.m. The tournament opens with Penn against UTEP at 5:30 p.m.