Unrivaled history

For more than three decades, Syracuse and Georgetown have played one of the most heated rivalries in college basketball. The games have been marked by incredible shots, heroic individual performances, controversial calls and verbal slights flung from both sides. It’s a rivalry between two founding members of the Big East that came to define the league as one of the best basketball conferences in the nation. With this being the final season for both teams in the Big East before Syracuse moves to the Atlantic Coast Conference, here’s a look at some of the highlights from the battles Syracuse and Georgetown have played through the years.

 

Feb. 13, 1980

Thompson closes Manley Field House

The game kicked off an intense rivalry that spanned three decades, and set the tone for the type of battles Syracuse and Georgetown would play for years to come. The Orange was ranked No. 2. The Hoyas, unranked. But Georgetown came into Manley Field House and upset Syracuse 52-50, ending the Orange’s 57-game home winning streak. Syracuse held a 14-point lead at halftime, but saw it disappear in the second half.  Eric “Sleepy” Floyd hit two free throws in the game’s closing seconds to pull off the upset win.

After the game, Georgetown head coach John Thompson famously said, “Manley Field House is officially closed.”

 

March 10, 2006

McNamara’s heroics

In one of the greatest performances of his career, Gerry McNamara single-handedly led Syracuse to an incredible win over Georgetown in the semifinals of the Big East tournament. The Orange was the No. 9 seed heading into the tournament, but put together a remarkable run thanks to McNamara. Against the Hoyas in the semis, McNamara scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half, which helped SU overcome a 15-point deficit at halftime. He hit a 3-pointer – his fifth of the game – that brought Syracuse within one with 48.1 seconds remaining in the game. Then, with about nine seconds left, he found Eric Devendorf around the basket for the game-winning layup that sent the Orange to the final round against Pittsburgh.

“You know, it was our time,” McNamara told reporters after the game. “We didn’t want to come down here just to win two games and go home. We wanted to come down here and try to win it.”

 

March 10, 1984

Graham’s left hook

In one of the testiest games between Syracuse and Georgetown ever, the Hoyas pulled off an 82-71 win in the Big East tournament with the help of an extremely controversial call. The Orange held a three-point lead late in the game. Georgetown’s Michael Graham and SU’s Andre Hawkins were fighting for a rebound off of a Hoya miss when Graham punched Hawkins in the side of the face. Despite punching Hawkins, Graham was only called for a two-shot flagrant foul and was never ejected. Georgetown went on to win the hotly contested game.

Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim didn’t veil his emotions afterward.

“I have only one thing to say: My kids did everything possible tonight, but the refs purely and simply took the game away from us,” Boeheim told reporters. “The ref didn’t even have the guts to call the correct foul, and then he had the nerve to turn around and call a five-second violation against my team.

“Georgetown has a great team, but tonight the best team did not win.”

 

March 4, 1990

Three techs for Thompson

With 2:14 left in the first half, Georgetown head coach John Thompson drew his first technical foul when the Hoyas’ Dwayne Bryant was called for fouling Syracuse big man Derrick Coleman. As Coleman stood at the line taking his free throws, Thompson continued to yell at referee Jim Burr. Burr gave him a technical foul for abusive language. Reacting to the call, Thompson stomped the floor angrily, so referee Larry Lembo gave Thompson a technical foul for that. After retreating to the bench, Thompson decided to come back out on the floor. Referee Pete Pavia gave Thompson his third technical foul and ejected him from the game.

Thompson’s son, Ronny, was playing for Georgetown at the time. When he entered the game in the second half, the Carrier Dome crowd greeted him with chants of, “Where’s your dad, Ronny, where’s your dad?”

Coleman hit one of his two free throws from the personal foul, then knocked down five of six from the technical fouls. Billy Owens drained a 3-pointer for Syracuse right after to give SU a 43-36 lead. With one second left in regulation and Georgetown holding a two-point lead, the Hoyas’ Sam Jefferson fouled Owens. He hit both free throws and tied the game. Syracuse ended up winning in overtime, 89-87.

 

Jan. 29, 1985

Washington’s shot

Syracuse’s Pearl Washington hit a jump shot with eight seconds left in the game to send Syracuse to a 65-63 win over Georgetown in the Dome. The Hoyas entered the game ranked No. 1 in the nation. They turned the ball over with 34 seconds left in the game, prompting Boeheim to call a timeout. He drew up a play that ended with Washington hitting a 15-foot jumper to give the Orange a 64-63 lead. Georgetown’s Michael Jackson missed a desperation heave from almost midcourt with one second left in the game. The Orange won in front of 32,229 fans, which was the third largest crowd ever in the Dome to that point.

-compiled by Chris Iseman, sports editor, cjiseman@syr.edu

Published on February 22, 2013 at 2:20 am