Turn back the clock: Jim Boeheim instructs his troops in practice during his early years at SU.
Boeheim Takes the Floor for Milestone 1,000th Game Saturday
1/24/2007 9:49:36 AM | Men's Basketball
SYRACUSE – Orange men’s basketball coach Jim Boeheim will patrol the sidelines for the 1,000th time in his career when Syracuse (15-5, 4-2) takes on Louisville (14-6, 4-2) on Saturday, Jan. 27 in Freedom Hall. Boeheim is the only active head coach to coach 1,000 games at one school. Saturday’s contest will be televised live nationally on ESPN. Live audio of the contest can be heard on SUathletics.com via Orange All Access and fans can also tune in to the Syracuse ISP Sports Network broadcast on WAQX (95.7 FM) and WNSS (1260 AM). Sirius Satellite Radio listeners can hear the game on channel 158.
Boeheim took the reigns at his alma mater in 1976-77 after serving as a graduate assistant, assistant coach and playing three seasons for the Orange. In 31 years as head coach, Boeheim owns a record of 741-258. He is the winningest coach in BIG EAST history (326-177) and led SU to its first NCAA title in 2003. Boeheim was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005 and he is tied with former Temple coach John Chaney for 14th on the all-time Division I coaching wins list.
Fittingly, it is Rick Pitino who will be on the bench for the Cardinals serving as Boeheim’s adversary in his 1,000th basketball foray. Pitino was an assistant coach for the Orange during Boeheim’s first two years as head coach at Syracuse and the two have remained friends throughout the years.
Both Syracuse and Louisville are tied for second in the BIG EAST standings with 4-2 conference marks. The Orange had an opportunity to move into a tie for the league’s top spot, but saw its four-game winning streak come to an end at St. John’s, 64-60, on Jan. 21. The Cardinals have won four of their last five, including a 68-54 home win against Connecticut on Jan. 22.
For Syracuse, senior Terrence Roberts has been a force in the paint of late – both scoring and rebounding. Roberts has put up three straight double-doubles for the first time in his career and he is averaging 15.0 points and 11.3 rebounds in SU’s last three contests. For his performance against Cincinnati (17 points/10 rebounds) and St. John’s (11 points/10 rebounds), Roberts earned a spot on this week’s BIG EAST Honor Roll.
Sophomore guard Eric Devendorf has continued to play well in the role of sixth man. Devendorf tallied a career-best 23 points against the Red Storm, including 18 in the second half, as the Orange nearly rallied for the victory. Devendorf has been in double figures in five of SU’s six conference outings.
Louisville is 14-6 overall and has played 11 of its last 14 games in the friendly confines of Freedom Hall. The Cardinals have received contributions from several players on its roster with 12 having made at least one start. Nine players are averaging more than 10 minutes per game.
Only one Cardinal has been with the first unit for all 20 games – Terrence Williams. Williams is Louisville’s top scorer (13.3 ppg) and rebounder (7.8 rpg). Edgar Sosa and Juan Palacios are also averaging double figures at 11.0 and 10.1 points per game, resepectively.
Syracuse is 4-6 all-time against the Cardinals with all four wins coming since Boeheim took the head coaching reigns. The Orange has won three of the last four meetings between the two teams, including a 79-66 victory last year at the Dome. Louisville won the first four games of the series which dates back to 1964.
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