Demetris Nichols averaged 19.5 points in SU's two exhibition victories.
Orange Tips Off 106th Basketball Season on Friday
11/8/2006 4:57:03 PM | Men's Basketball
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Syracuse men’s basketball team begins its 106th season at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 10 against St. Francis (N.Y.) in the Black Coaches Association (BCA) Invitational at the Carrier Dome. Friday’s contest is the second game of a doubleheader. The first game pits Pennsylvania against the University of Texas-El Paso at 5:30 p.m. Live streaming audio and video of both games will be available.
The St. Francis (N.Y.) encounter is the first of three games in three days for SU as the four tournament participants engage in a round-robin affair. The Syracuse-St. Francis (N.Y.) winner will meet the loser of Friday’s first game on Saturday and vice versa. On Sunday, each team will face the one opponent it has yet to play. All six games of the tournament will be streamed live.
This season marks the beginning of SU coach Jim Boeheim’s 31st season at the helm of his alma mater. He enters the year fifth among active coaches in career victories (726) and he ranks 17th on the NCAA’s all-time wins ledger.
The Orange went 2-0 in the preseason, posting wins in a pair of exhibitions against Bryant University on Nov. 1 (92-86) and Cal State-Los Angeles (99-51) on Nov. 5. Senior Demetris Nichols (Boston, Mass.) averaged 19.5 points per contest in the two games, and sophomore guard Eric Devendorf (Bay City, Mich.) averaged 17.5 points per game, including a team-high 30 points versus Bryant.
The two games marked the first appearances for heralded freshmen Paul Harris (Niagara Falls, N.Y.) and Mike Jones (Hopkins, S.C.). Harris tallied eight points in each game and had a game-best 13 boards against Cal State-Los Angeles. Jones went for 14 points against the Golden Eagles, including two 3-pointers.
Friday’s game also marks the season opener for St. Francis (N.Y.). The Terriers are coached by Brian Nash, now in his second season. Nash led the squad to a 10-17 overall record last year, including four wins in its last five games, and a 7-11 mark in the Northeast Conference.
The Terriers bring back their top scorer from a year ago in the form of senior Allan Sheppard (11.6 ppg). Sheppard is also the leading returning rebounder for St. Francis (N.Y.). He averaged 4.8 boards per game in 2005-06. Junior guard Jamaal Womack is the team’s second-leading returning scorer at 5.9 points per outing.
The Orange won the only other meeting between the two teams, 73-53, at the Dome on Nov. 19, 2000. Preston Shumpert netted a game-high 23 points and Damone Brown was also in double figures for SU with 17 points.
The gates at the Carrier Dome will open at 4:30 p.m. on Friday for the doubleheader. Saturday gates will open at 3:30 p.m. with the first game scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m and Sunday they will open at 2:30 p.m. with the first game scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m.
Individual and season basketball ticket packages can be purchased on suathletics.com by clicking here or by calling the Carrier Dome Box Office at 1-888-DOMETIX.
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