Syracuse University
St. John's
G-Mac Scores 23 in 75-60 Win Against St. John's
2/12/2006 4:08:00 PM | Men's Basketball
NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Senior guard Gerry McNamara tallied 23 points and dished out eight assists as the Syracuse University men's basketball team defeated St. John's 75-60 at Madison Square Garden. The win improved the Orange's season record to 17-7 overall and 5-5 in the BIG EAST Conference. The Red Storm lost its sixth-consecutive contest and is now 10-12 on the season, 3-8 in league play.
Log on to Orange All Access to watch highlights of today's game
McNamara moved into seventh place on the school's all-time scoring list, surpassing Preston Shumpert (1998-02) with 1,925 career points. He also climbed to 11th on the NCAA's career 3-point field goals list, moving ahead of Valparaiso's Bryce Drew with 365 career three's. McNamara hit 3-of-10 shots from beyond the arc against the Red Storm and finished the game 7-of-15 from the field. He made all six of his attempts from the foul line, improving his season percentage to .932 (82-of-88).
SU led by as many as 10 points three times in the first half (15-5, 17-7, 19-9) and never trailed in the contest. McNamara registered 13 first-half points. Â
St. John's was able to creep back within five points before halftime, thanks to back-to-back 3-pointers by Eugene Lawrence and Ricky Torres, four points by guard Daryl Hill, and a three-point play by Aaron Spears all during the half's final five minutes. Â
At the break, Syracuse clung to a 34-29 lead.
Freshman guard Eric Devendorf netted four of his 18 points in the first three minutes of the second half. Devendorf ended up making 9-of-11 shots from the field. He frequently went to his money-move - the driving left-handed scoop shot.
The Orange opened it up to a 15-point differential, 53-38, after Terrence Roberts found Darryl Watkins underneath for two of his 11 points at the 12:39 mark. Watkins recorded his third double-double of the season with 11 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. He also blocked four shots and had five steals. One of the hottest players on the Syracuse team, Watkins has combined for 23 points, 23 boards, eight blocks and seven steals in his last two games.Â
Junior Demetris Nichols helped widen the gap to 19 points, 61-42, with eight of his 10 points within a four-minute span midway through the second half, including two three pointers.Â
McNamara and Devendorf then teamed up for seven-straight points with 7:37 remaining to give the Orange its largest lead of the afternoon, 68-45. McNamara tallied his third three, while Devendorf finished off a pass from McNamara on a delayed break and then scored a layup with 6:20 remaining.
Syracuse shot .549 from the field (28-of-51) while limiting the Red Storm to .383 (18-of-47).
Spears led St. John's in scoring with 15 points, while Hill added 11.
The victory was the 720th for Coach Jim Boeheim at Syracuse. The triumph moved him past Don Haskins into 18th on the Division I career win list.
SU will play its next three games at home, beginning with a Feb. 15 tilt against Cincinnati at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN 2. ESPN College Gameday will be at the Carrier Dome on Saturday, Feb. 18, to cover the Orange's 9 p.m. contest against Louisville. Then on Monday, Feb. 20, SU entertains West Virginia at 7 p.m. on ESPN.Â
