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Sunday, February 14
Syracuse, NY
1:00 p.m.
Syracuse University
60
vs
66
University of Louisville
Andy Rautins had 12 points, including three 3-pointers, Sunday against Louisville.
Louisville Tops #2/3 Syracuse, 66-60
2/14/2010 3:24:38 PM | Men's Basketball
Player Quotes l Boeheim Quotes l Box Score
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Louisville halted #2/3 Syracuse's 11-game winning streak on Sunday, Feb. 14, defeating the Orange, 66-60, at the Carrier Dome in front of the largest on-campus crowd in the nation this season (31,053). The loss was Syracuse's fifth straight against the Cardinals and the team's first since losing to Pittsbugh on Jan. 2.
Junior forward Wes Johnson led the Orange (24-2, 11-2) with 14 points and eight rebounds. Senior center Arinze Onuaku contributed 12 points, seven boards, two blocks and two steals. Senior Andy Rautins (12 points) and sophomore Kris Joseph (10 points) rounded out SU's double-figure scorers. Joseph also pulled down eight rebounds.
Despite trailing by six with less than two minutes to play, the resilient Orange nearly squeezed out its 12th straight win. Following a three by Louisville's Mike Marra that pushed the Cardinals' advantage to 62-56 with 1:28 to play, the Orange got four straight points from Joseph, including a dunk with 32 seconds left, to trim deficit to 62-60.
SU head coach Jim Boeheim called timeout to set up the press and the Orange forced a turnover when Rakeem Buckles dribbled the ball on the endline. However, Buckles atoned for his mistake, blocking Johnson on a drive to the basket that would have tied it.
The Cardinals corralled the loose ball after the block and Joseph was whistled for an intentional foul that essentially sealed the game.
Jerry Smith went to the line and sank both free throws to put the visitors back in front, 64-60, with 18 ticks left. A Buckles dunk at the buzzer after a desperate 3-point heave by SU redshirt sophomore Scoop Jardine produced the final score.
Marra and Edgar Sosa paced Louisville (16-9, 7-5) with 12 points each. Marra scored all 12 of his points from the beyond the arc, hitting four 3-pointers. Jared Swopshire and Preston Knowles both had 10 points.
The SU defense did a good job on Louisville leading scorer Samardo Samuels for the majority of the game. Samuels scored just eight points. However, they all came in an 11-2 run that gave Louisville a seven-point lead, 59-52, with three minutes to play.
The win was quite a turnaround for the Cardinals, who lost 74-55 Thursday at St. John's and struggled shooting the ball at the outset against the Orange Sunday. Louisville missed eight of its first nine shots from the field, enabling Syracuse to jump out to a 10-2 lead seven minutes into the contest. Junior Rick Jackson and Onuaku fueled the run, combining for eight early points.
The Cardinals began to find their rhythm midway through the period as back-to-back three's by Swopshire and Sosa helped close the gap to 11-8 with 12:41 left in the first half. However, the Orange responded with an 11-3 run to claim its largest lead of the game, 22-11, at the 8:23 mark.
A 10-2 spurt again got the Cardinals back in it, and Louisville took its first lead of the contest, 28-27, on a Marra 3-pointer with 1:43 remaining in the first. But the Orange scored the final basket of the frame, a jumper by Jardine with 41 seconds left, to take a 29-28 advantage at the break.
In the second half, Louisville led 42-39 before consecutive 3-pointers by Rautins brought the Dome crowd to its feet. The treys gave the Orange a 45-42 advantage with 10:47 to play and forced a timeout by Cardinals' head coach Rick Pitino.
Syracuse still was still up four, 50-46, with 8:23 to go, but two free throws by Samuels, his first points of the game, ignited the run that gave the Cardinals control of the game.
The Orange was outshot for just the second time this season against the Cardinals. Louisville was 24-for-56 (.429) from the field, while Syracuse made 24-of-58 (.414) attempts. The Cardinals made nine treys in the contest to five for the Orange.
Sunday's loss ended a modest two-game homestand for Syracuse. The Orange will play its next two games on the road. Syracuse visits Georgetown on Thursday, Feb. 18 and heads to Providence for a matchup with the Friars on Tuesday, Feb. 23.
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