Tuesday, March 3
Carrier Dome
9:00 p.m.
Syracuse University
vs
Rutgers
Kristof Ongenaet will play his final regular-season home game Tuesday against Rutgers.
SU Hosts Rutgers In Home Finale
3/2/2009 2:44:42 PM | Men's Basketball
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SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Orange men's basketball team (21-8, 9-7) will host Rutgers (10-19, 1-15) in its regular-season home finale on Tuesday, March 3 at 9 p.m. in the Carrier Dome. The contest marks the final game in the careers of seniors Kristof Ongenaet, Jake Presutti and Justin Thomas. They will be recognized briefly prior to tipoff along with SU's senior managers.
Tuesday's matchup will be televised live nationally on ESPNU. Fans can also catch the action on radio via the Syracuse ISP Sports Network and its flagship station TK 99 (99.5 FM). Live audio of the game will be available online on SUathletics.com as part of Orange All Access.
ABOUT THE ORANGE
Syracuse secured at least a .500 record in the BIG EAST with a dominating 87-63 win against Cincinnati Sunday. The Orange never trailed in the contest and led by as many as 33 in the second half. All five starters scored in double figures for SU and the Orange defense limited Bearcats' star guard and leading scorer Deonta Vaughn to 11 points, all of which came late in the second half.
The offensive showing vaulted the Orange into the conference lead in scoring offense at 80.2 ppg. The Cincinnati victory was SU's fourth game in a row in which it scored at least 80 points and it marked the 18th time the team eclipsed the 80-point mark this season. Sophomore guard Jonny Flynn paced the Orange with 17 points in the victory. It was his 20th straight double-digit scoring effort. He also dished out seven assists.
Classmate Rick Jackson improved upon his field-goal percentage numbers hitting all six of his attempts against the Bearcats and finishing with 13 points. For the season, Jackson is 101-for-162 (.623) from the field, which ranks fifth overall in the BIG EAST this year and is also sixth on SU's single-season record list.
Junior Paul Harris tallied 16 points against the Bearcats and was 6-of-8 (.750) from the free-throw line to move into SU's top 10 in career throws made. Harris passed Bill Smith and now ranks 10th on that list with 382 career makes. Greg Kohls is ninth with 388.
ONGENAET, PRESUTTI AND THOMAS PLAY FINAL HOME GAME
Seniors Kristof Ongenaet, Jake Presutti and Justin Thomas will take the court at the Carrier Dome for the final time Tuesday. Ongenaet has been Syracuse's first forward off the bench during the second half of this season after starting the team's first 12 games. He's averaging 2.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per contest this year and led the Orange with nine boards against Cincinnati. For his career, Ongenaet has played in 59 games with 27 starts and has averaged 3.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
Presutti, a walk-on for the majority of his career, earned a scholarship in 2007-08. He's appeared in 25 contests since joining the team in 2005-06, including 11 this year.
Thomas joined the Orange as a walk-on in 2006-07. He's played in 18 career games.
SCOUTING RUTGERS
The Scarlet Knights enter Tuesday's game with just one conference win, a 75-56 triumph against DePaul on Jan. 31. Rutgers has lost its seven games and 16 of its last 17 since starting the year 9-3. It is 0-8 in BIG EAST road games this season.
Rutgers is led offensively by BIG EAST Rookie of the Year candidate Mike Rosario. He is averaging 16.9 ppg and has started 28 of the team's 29 games. He also lists second on the team with 31 steals. Senior guard Anthony Farmer has been Rutgers' second-best scoring option at 9.3 ppg. Farmer is tops on the club in assists (81).
In the low post, freshman forward Gregory Echenique has emerged as one of the best shot blockers in the BIG EAST. He lists second in the league at 2.6 blocks per game and trails only Connecticut's Hasheem Thabeet who is second nationally (4.6 bpg). He is also Rutgers' best rebounder at 8.4 boards per outing.
THE SERIES
Syracuse has a 34-9 advantage in the overall series with Rutgers, including an 82-66 win at the RAC earlier season. The Orange has won the last eight encounters with the Scarlet Knights and is 20-1 against them all-time in game played in Syracuse. The only Rutgers win in the Salt City was a 76-75 victory on Feb. 6, 1975.
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