Syracuse University
Cornell
Three in a Holiday Bow: Orange Out-Muscles Cornell, 80-64
12/22/2007 9:18:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Box Score
Coach Boeheim Quotes
Syracuse Player Quotes
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Syracuse captured its third win in as many outings, and fifth in its last six tries, with an 80-64 win in the 115th meeting all-time against Cornell on Saturday night in front of 19,253 fans at the Carrier Dome. Freshman point guard Jonny Flynn posted a game-high 21 points on 9-for-14 shooting while dishing five assists.
Junior center Arinze Onuaku powered an Orange inside presence that was unmatched by the Big Red. Onuaku, who has now missed just three field goals in the last four outings, collected 18 points on an efficient 8-for-10 shooting while grabbing six rebounds. Syracuse out-rebounded Cornell 51-36 and out-scored the visitors 58-22 in the paint.
Cornell entered Saturday's contest ranked fifth in the country in three-point percentage, posting a 44.2 shooting percent from beyond the arc. The Big Red shot 38.5 percent from deep, connecting on 10-of-26 tries. Sophomore Ryan Wittman, averaging a team-best 15.4 points per contest, shot just 2-for-14 from the field and scored six points.
Onuaku's runner in the lane at the 18:30 mark of the first half supplied Syracuse with a 4-2 lead, an advantage it would never relinquish. The Orange pushed its lead to 32-18 with an 18-6 run out of the 16-minute media timeout. Sophomore Paul Harris' highlight dunk over Cornell's 7-0 center Jeff Foote capped the SU spurt. Harris scored 10 points, grabbed seven rebounds and added five assists.
Syracuse extended its first-half cushion to 17 points at 37-20 following sensational back-to-back sequences from Flynn. Freshman forward Donte' Greene chased down a long outlet pass before finding the rookie court general on the other end of a lob for a two-hand slam. The next trip down the floor, Flynn sized up his defender before draining a trifecta. Greene posted his third-career double-double after tallying 11 points and collecting 10 rebounds.
The Orange owned its biggest lead of the first frame at 20 points after junior Kristof Ongenaet converted an old-fashion three-point play at the 5:57 mark. Ongenaet recorded career highs with nine points and ten rebounds.
The Syracuse lead ballooned to 68-45 in the second half behind a relentless effort on the glass. Freshman forward Rick Jackson totaled six points and corralled seven rebounds as the Orange posted 16 second chance points.
After shooting 20 percent from beyond the arc in the first half, the Big Red caught fire and drilled three three-point baskets in as many trips, cutting the Orange lead to 13 points at the 4:55 mark. Sophomore point guard Dale Louis led all Cornell scorers with 15 points on 6-for-11 shooting.
However, Cornell's late charged proved to be too little too late as the Orange found itself up 17 points with just under three minutes remaining following a fast-break dunk from Greene.
Freshman combo guard Scoop Jardine made his second consecutive start in the wake of junior Eric Devendorf's season-ending knee injury against East Tennessee State. Jardine tallied four points, recorded three rebounds and contributed two assists.
Syracuse (9-3) will resume a season-long seven-game homestand following the Christmas holiday on Sunday, December 30 at 1:00 p.m. against Northeastern. Orange fans can catch SU against the Huskies on Time Warner 26.
