2009–10 Syracuse Orange men's basketball team explained

Mode:Basketball
Year:2009–10
Team:Syracuse Orange
Short Conf:Big East
Coachrank:8
Aprank:4
Record:30 - 5
Conf Record:15 - 3
Champion:Big East Regular Season Champions
Coaches vs. Cancer Classic Champions
Bowl Result:Sweet Sixteen

The 2009–10 Syracuse Orange men's basketball team represented Syracuse University in the 2009–10 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Their head coach was Jim Boeheim, serving for his 34th year. The team played its home games at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York. Key contributors included seniors Arinze Onuaku and Andy Rautins, juniors Rick Jackson and Wesley Johnson, sophomores Scoop Jardine and Kris Joseph and freshmen Mookie Jones, DaShonte Riley, James Southerland and Brandon Triche.

Although widely expected to finish near the middle of the league, the Orange captured its eighth Big East regular season title, and second outright, as well as the No. 1 seed in the Big East tournament. The team also achieved its first No. 1 ranking in the national AP Poll since the 1989-90 season, and its first in the ESPN/USA Today coaches' poll since winning the national championship in 2003.[1] [2]

The Orange failed to win the Big East tournament, falling in the quarterfinals to Georgetown, but their regular season efforts earned them a 1 seed in the West Region of the 2010 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. They easily won their first and second-round games over 16 seed Vermont and 8 seed Gonzaga to advance to the Sweet Sixteen where they were upset by 5 seed and AP #11 Butler to end the season 30 - 5.

Preseason

Roster changes

Syracuse lost its starting backcourt from the previous season as point guard Jonny Flynn declared for the 2009 NBA draft and was taken with the sixth overall pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Also turning pro were shooting guard Eric Devendorf and small forward Paul Harris. The Orange also lost one scholarship senior, power forward Kristof Ongenaet and one transfer, center Sean Williams.

Additions to the team include Iowa State transfer Wes Johnson, who sat out the 2008–09 season because of NCAA transfer rules. Also, point guard Scoop Jardine returns after redshirting due to a stress fracture in his shin. Small forward Mookie Jones also redshirted the previous year because of a hip injury.

Syracuse also brought in three new players for 2009-10: power forward DaShonte Riley, small forward James Southerland and guard Brandon Triche. Southerland was actually a 2008 recruit, but could not play because he was academically ineligible. He spent a year at a prep school to improve his grades.

Recruiting

Roster

Preseason outlook

The departure of Flynn left many college basketball observers pessimistic about the Orange. In the preseason coaches' poll, Syracuse was predicted to finish sixth in the Big East and were unranked[3] in the preseason AP Poll. Arinze Onuaku was the only Orange player to make the preseason All-Big East team, receiving an honorable mention.[4]

Season

Notable games

Other news

Schedule

|-!colspan=9| Exhibition[10] |-!colspan=9| Regular Season[11] |-!colspan=9| Big East tournament|-!colspan=9| NCAA tournament†|-

Rankings

See main article: 2009–10 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings.

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Tied with team above or below also with this symbol -->
Poll Pre Wk 1 Wk 2 Wk 3 Wk 4 Wk 5 Wk 6 Wk 7 Wk 8 Wk 9 Wk 10 Wk 11 Wk 12 Wk 13 Wk 14 Wk 15 Wk 16 WK 17 Wk 18 Final
APRVRV108755575543254134NA
Coaches2524976555755443541348
ESPN Power RankingNARVNANANANANANANA655222431NANA

Notes and References

  1. https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g0gx6y2HHT6GIQs4FoWphzkggY3wD9E69SL00 "Syracuse No. 1 for first time in 20 years"
  2. https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/news/story?id=4956590 "Syracuse rises to No. 1 in coaches' poll"
  3. Web site: 2010 NCAA Men's Basketball Rankings - Preseason . March 26, 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100321031042/http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/rankings/_/year/2010/week/1/seasontype/2 . March 21, 2010 . live . mdy .
  4. Web site: SU Picked Sixth in BIG EAST Preseason Poll . October 21, 2009 . SUAthletics.com . October 24, 2009 .
  5. https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/news/story?id=4620949 "Johnson, LeMoyne stun Syracuse"
  6. https://web.archive.org/web/20091123135152/http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=293240153 "Syracuse opens second half with 22-1 run to topple North Carolina"
  7. https://archive.today/20130103100639/http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=293440057 "Jackson has 21 points, 11 rebounds as Syracuse remains unbeaten"
  8. https://web.archive.org/web/20100106130751/http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=300030183 "It's cold outside: No. 5 Syracuse goes 1 of 13 on 3-pointers in loss to Pitt"
  9. https://web.archive.org/web/20100128004815/http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=300250183 "Boeheim takes over sixth place on career wins list"
  10. http://suathletics.com/schedule.aspx?path=mbasket 2009-10 Men's Basketball Schedule
  11. https://web.archive.org/web/20071216140935/http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/teams/schedule?teamId=183 Syracuse Orange Schedule - 2009-10