Syracuse University
Cal-State L.A. (exhibition)
Basketball Is Back!
10/23/2009 11:45:54 AM | Men's Basketball
Tickets | Live video/audio | Live Stats
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Orange men's basketball squad begins the 2009-10 season with its first exhibition game on Sunday, Oct. 25 against Cal State Los Angeles. Tip time is 2 p.m. at the Carrier Dome. The contest marks the third time in the last four years the Orange will scrimmage the Golden Eagles and their head coach, former SU star Stevie Thompson. Thompson played for the Orange from 1986-90. He was a freshman on the SU squad that advanced to the 1987 NCAA title game and he was elected to the school's All-Century Team during the 1999-00 season.
Tickets for Sunday's exhibition are available online, by phone (1-888-DOMETIX) or in person at the Carrier Dome Box Office. Fans not in attendance can watch the game live on Time Warner Sports in the Syracuse area or listen to the action via the Syracuse ISP Radio Network and its flagship TK 99 (99.5 FM). The video and audio streams of the broadcast will be available on SUathletics.com as part of Orange All Access.
THOMPSON COMES HOME TO THE DOME
Stevie Thompson was part of one of the most successful eras in SU basketball history. During his four years, Syracuse produced a record of 113-31 (.784), made four NCAA Tournament appearances, won two BIG EAST regular-season titles (1986-87, 1989-90) and won one BIG EAST Tournament crown (1987-88). Thompson was a two-time All-American (1988-89, 1989-90) and still holds the Syracuse record for games played (144). He ranks seventh in school history in points (1,956) and lists second in career field goals made (801).
ABOUT THE ORANGE
Syracuse was picked to finish sixth in the BIG East according to the results of the league's preseason coaches' poll and the club returns three starters. The frontcourt duo of senior Arinze Onuaku and junior Rick Jackson is one of the best in the league, plus veteran guard Andy Rautins gives the team one of the best 3-point threats in the nation.
Onuaku earned Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention laurels earlier this week. Last year, he led the BIG EAST and set an Orange season record for field-goal percentage (.667). He posted double-digit scoring efforts in 16 of the first 19 contests and averaged 10.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game for the year.
Joining him up front will be Jackson, who averaged 9.5 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.6 blocks a year ago. He led all BIG EAST Conference performers in field-goal percentage in league games (.667) and connected on.623 of his field-goal attempts during the year, which is the sixth-best mark in program history.
Rautins is the team's most experienced player in the backcourt. He scored 10.5 points a game last season and made102 3-pointers, the fourth-best season total in school history. One of his most memorable performances came at the Dome against Coppin State when scored 29 points and tied the SU game record for 3-point field goals made with nine.
While Rautins is entrenched at shooting guard, the point guard spot is up for grabs between freshman Brandon Triche and sophomore Scoop Jardine. Triche won two state high school championships at nearby Jamesville-DeWitt. His uncle, Howard Triche, and his cousin, Jason Hart, were both four-year letterwinners for the Orange.
Jardine appeared in 33 games as freshman in 2007-08. He redshirted last season due to injury.
Fans will also get their first look at junior Wesley Johnson in a Syracuse uniform. Johnson sat out last season after transferring from Iowa State. As a sophomore with the Cyclones, he averaged 12.4 points a game in 27 contests. As a freshman, he was named to the Big 12 Conference All-Rookie Team and led the league in offensive rebound average (3.16).
Head coach Jim Boeheim begins his 34th season at his alma mater. Boeheim, a 2005 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, owns a career record of 799-288 (.735) and should garner his 800th victory in November. When he does, he will join Duke's Mike Krzyzewski (Duke) and Jim Calhoun (Connecticut) as the only active Division I coaches to reach that milestone and he will be just the eighth Division I coach in NCAA history to achieve that feat.
Boeheim guided the Orange to a 28-10 record season last year, the 31st time Syracuse won at least 20 games under his direction.
SCOUTING CAL STATE LOS ANGELES
Sunday's game is the first of three exhibitions for the Division II Golden Eagles. Cal State L.A. will also play Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 9 and UC-Santa Barbara on Nov. 14 before opening the regular season against Hope International University on Nov. 17.
The Golden Eagles have a revamped roster, bringing in seven newcomers to help the team rebound from a 12-15 finish in 2008-09. A rash of injuries contributed to Cal State L.A.'s struggles last season, including one to leading scorer Chris Fields, who averaged 16.5 points per game before getting hurt. Despite the injury, Fields, now a senior, earned All-CCAA Second Team honors in 2008-09, and he is one of just four players from last year still on the roster. Also back in the fold are senior guard Dwayne Jones (9.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg), sophomore forward Leland Jones (3.8 ppg, 3.1 rpg) and junior center Trenod Smith (2.2 ppg, 3.1 rpg).
Of the newcomers, junior Duwayne King is the most promising. King averaged 10.4 points and 4.4 rebounds per game at Cypress College last year.
THE SERIES
Sunday's game marks the third time in the last four years Syracuse has hosted the Golden Eagles in an exhibition. The Orange posted a 77-56 victory last season and knocked off Cal State L.A., 99-51, on Nov. 5, 2006.
