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  Thursday, Mar. 9 12:00pm ET
Boeheim sees red over Orangemen
 
  RECAP | BOX SCORE

NEW YORK (AP) -- Coach Jim Boeheim was blunt about top-seeded Syracuse's 76-72 flameout Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament against Georgetown.

Etan Thomas, Kevin Braswell
Kevin Braswell, who scored 20 points for Georgetown, drives against Syracuse's Etan Thomas.

The Orangemen were awful and Boeheim found a variety of ways to say it.

"This had nothing to do with Georgetown," Boeheim said. "The problem was Syracuse. This was the worst we played for a while. I didn't see any leadership or effort until there were 10 minutes to go in the game."

And by then, Georgetown had the idea it could win and pulled off the upset.

"We had no defensive intensity at all," Boeheim continued. "Georgetown killed us from the start."

The loss almost certainly will impact on Syracuse's seeding for the NCAA Tournament. Boeheim, however, had bigger concerns than that.

"We can't come out and play like this or we'll lose to anybody in the first round," he said. "I hope we learn the lesson this week rather than next week."

Orange crushed
NEW YORK -- Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim couldn't understand how the Orangemen had to struggle to get in the top five when they were undefeated. After last Saturday's loss at Connecticut, he was convinced the Orangemen would have to fight for a No. 2 or No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, even if they won the Big East tournament.

He's not expecting any favors after the top-seeded Orangemen lost to ninth-seeded Georgetown in Thursday's quarterfinals. A fourth seed may be a reach, a fifth seed more realistic.

"We lost to St. John's by one point here and dropped five or six places in the polls," Boeheim said. "Duke lost by one point at home and dropped two places. It's obvious we haven't gotten much respect this year in the league. I'm sure we're going to drop."

The Orangemen saved their worst game of the season for Thursday, failing to keep Georgetown point guard Kevin Braswell in front of them on the perimeter and unable to keep Ruben Boumtje Boumtje and Lee Scruggs out of the middle of the lane.

"This game had nothing to do with Georgetown, it had to do with Syracuse," Boeheim said. "This is the worst we've played all year. We've been a pretty consistent team, with pretty good leadership. I didn't see any leadership. I didn't see any effort until about 10 minutes to go in the game."

Meanwhile, Georgetown is the spoiler in this tournament. The Hoyas would have a hard time making an argument for at-large berth with only six conference wins. But Georgetown does have a legitimate chance to move into the final, giving them a realistic shot at the automatic berth.

Braswell scored 20 points, mostly by getting to the line. He hit 10 of 12 free throws, as the Hoyas dominated play in the paint with 27 shots from the line. Braswell is the early favorite for MVP of the tournament after he made a 3-pointer to beat West Virginia. Boumtje Boumtje didn't play against West Virginia because of a sprained ankle, but didn't look hurt Thursday. Scruggs was a dominant force inside with 20 and nine rebounds.

The Hoyas played zone to frustrate the Orangemen, who were 7 of 20 on 3s, after shooting 1 of 12 in the loss to the Huskies last Saturday. Braswell's defense was just as sound as his offense, keeping Orangemen point Jason Hart in front of him on each possession.

"We've won 18 games and I don't know what the committee will do with us if we lose our next one," Georgetown coach Craig Esherick said. "But I knew this was a new season when we came here. I told the guys to pack for four days. That's what I did and I'm sure they did too."

-- Andy Katz, ESPN.com
The Hoyas (18-13) took advantage of Syracuse's lethargy and some sparkling guard play by Kevin Braswell to shoot down the No. 12 Orangemen. Braswell, who had 20 points, made nine free throws down the stretch and had a key interception to seal the shocker. It was his 3-pointer in the final second that beat West Virginia in the Big East opener.

"Braswell finally turned himself into a point guard," said Georgetown coach Craig Esherick, who had a long talk with the sophomore on the eve of the tournament. "The chat we had the other day will last us all the way through March."

It was just the third time in the 21-year history of the tournament that a top seed has been knocked off in the quarterfinals of this tournament and the second time it has happened to the Orangemen. It also was the first time in Big East history that a No. 9 seed has defeated a No. 1.

Lee Scruggs also had 20 for Georgetown, including a stretch of nine of 11 points as the Hoyas built a 33-30 halftime lead to as many as 10 points. Scruggs also had nine rebounds.

Syracuse (24-5) helped the Hoyas by going just 1-for-15 from the field to start the second half.

With the Orangemen frantically trying to catch the Hoyas in the final minutes, Jason Hart was fouled on a 3-point shot. But he made just one of three free throws, leaving the Orangemen trailing 70-65.

After Ryan Blackwell cut the lead to three points, Demetrius Hunter dropped in two foul shots to restore the five-point edge. As Syracuse rushed down court, Braswell stepped in front of a pass by Hart for the key interception with 21.8 second remaining. He dropped in four straight free throws in the final 18 seconds to finish off the victory for Georgetown.

The Hoyas got off to a 9-2 lead but Syracuse went a 15-2 run punctuated by two thunderous dunks by Etan Thomas to take the lead at 17-11. Georgetown came right back as Braswell nailed consecutive 3-pointers and Scruggs added two baskets in a 15-0 spurt to regain the lead at 26-17. The Hoyas, who lost by 15 points to Syracuse on Feb. 27, never trailed again.

Thomas led Syracuse with 17 points and 13 rebounds while Damone Brown scored 15, all in the second half and Hart and DeShaun Williams each scored 11.

The only other No. 1 seeds to lose Big East quarters were Boston College against Providence in 1981 and Syracuse against Villanova in 1991.
 


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