No. 25/21 Villanova Outlasts SU, 81-71

Saturday, January 19

Carrier Dome

12:00 p.m.

Syracuse University

Villanova

Game Notes Box Score

Freshman combo guard Scoop Jardine tallied 15 points against Villanova on Saturday.

1/19/2008 2:46:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score
Coach Boeheim Quotes
Syracuse Player Quotes

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Freshman point guard Jonny Flynn ignited the Syracuse (13-6, 3-3) offense with a team-high 23 points, but No. 25/21 Villanova (13-3, 3-2) shot 51.9 percent from the floor in the second half en route to an 81-71 win on Saturday afternoon at the Carrier Dome. The Loud House played host to 26,494 fans, the largest crowd in college basketball this season.

For the second time in as many outings, Flynn powered an Orange attack that boasted four scorers in double-figures. Freshman combo guard Scoop Jardine totaled 15 points and corralled four rebounds. Freshman forward Donte' Greene collected 12 points and posted four rebounds. Junior center Arinze Onuaku tallied his sixth-career double-double with 10 points and 10 boards.

Syracuse endured a second half hampered by three starters in foul trouble. Greene's afternoon came to an end at the 5:05 mark after committing his fifth personal foul. With 39 ticks remaining, Jardine tallied his fifth and final foul.

Villanova guard Scottie Reynolds, who led all scorers with 25 points, sunk two free throws at the 12:33 mark, handing the Wildcats a lead they would never relinquish. In a game of cat and mouse, the Orange remained in striking distance, trailing by no more than six points until the 3:21 mark.

With the Wildcats leading by four, Greene made an immediate impact, converting an offensive rebound into two points after returning to the game with four personal fouls with nine and a half minutes remaining. After Villanova pushed its advantage back to five at 60-55, Greene spun through the lane and drained an off-balance seven-footer.

With Greene relegated to the bench with five personal fouls, Onuaku's offensive rebound and putback brought the Orange within one possession at 66-63 with 4:59 left. However, Villanova freshman guard Corey Fisher responded with a back-breaking trifecta as the shot clock neared zero on the ensuing possession.

Reynolds canned three free throws on the Wildcats' next offensive trip, extending the VU edge to nine points at 72-63. Syracuse clawed back to within seven points but no closer following an emphatic baseline one-hand stuff from sophomore Paul Harris.

The Orange carried a 35-30 lead into the intermission behind Flynn's 14 first-half points. Syracuse overcame an early 10-3 advantage with a 9-0 scoring spurt in the opening minutes. Onuaku punctuated the run with a thunderous putback dunk off missed lay-in from Jardine.

SU pushed its advantage to eight points at 32-24 with a 9-2 run highlighted by a tough and-one lay-in from Flynn on a back-door cut. The rookie court general tallied Syracuse's final seven points of the first half.

SU edged the Wildcats on the glass, owning a 32-30 advantage. However, Villanova took advantage of 17 offensive rebounds with 21 second-chance points against the Orange's 13.

Syracuse returns to the road and will meet its second nationallly-ranked foe in as many outings when it plays at #5/6 Georgetown on Monday, January 21, at 7:00 p.m. SU fans can catch the Orange and Hoyas on ESPN as part of the network's "Big Monday" lineup.