CHICAGO — After the biggest win of their one-year college careers, which would also be the biggest win of most four-year college careers, Malachi Richardson and Frank Howard sat in the corner of a buzzing locker room and argued about time.

Yes, time.

The analog clock on the wall above the locker room’s door read a few minutes past 11:30 p.m. Howard watched an Instagram video on his phone and laughed. Richardson said it was even funnier considering it was an hour later on the east coast.

“No it’s not,” Howard answered. “It’s not an hour later.”

“Yes it is,” Richardson snapped back, a small smirk forming at the corners of his mouth. “Do you know how Central time works?”

They went on like this, wasting time talking about time. Central or Eastern. Eastern or Central. Both laughed but wouldn’t give up. Then Howard realized he’d been wrong all along and clumsily flipped his stance.

“That’s what I’m saying man,” he said, trying to keep a straight face. “Man I know what Central time is.”

If you happened to be in earshot of their conversation at that moment, and knew nothing about Syracuse basketball, you could safely draw two conclusions: Howard and Richardson are freshmen, and they probably didn’t play too much in SU’s (22-13, 9-9 Atlantic Coast) 63-60 win over Gonzaga (28-8, 15-3 West Cost) in the United Center on Friday. They were, after all, completely disconnected from any discussions about the game. They were, like any 19-year-olds, more interested in proving the other wrong.

But while that first conclusion would be spot on, the second would be ostensibly wrong.

Richardson, Howard and Tyler Lydon — the Orange’s three contributing freshmen — all played a tangible part in the win over the Bulldogs, which pushed 10th-seeded Syracuse into an Elite Eight matchup with top-seeded Virginia (29-7, 13-5) on Sunday. Their collective unconsciousness, a blissful unawareness that they’re supposed to be younger and dumber and less ready for the moment than their older counterparts, has added an essential layer to SU’s improbable NCAA Tournament run.

It’s hard to conjecture where or what the Orange would be without this trio. It’s easy to say that Syracuse would have started its offseason Friday if not for their nuanced contributions.

“You get to a point where it almost helps to be young,” said SU assistant coach Mike Hopkins, rather clairvoyantly, a day before Syracuse beat Dayton in the Round of 64. “Like if you don’t know how you’re supposed to be as a freshmen, then you won’t be. That’s how these guys are.”

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First, Howard.

Playing extended minutes in the first half to break down Gonzaga’s defense off the dribble, Howard drifted to the wing and was left all alone. Before starting his jump shot, he could have remembered that he was 1-for-16 from 3 on the season and had rarely gotten close to bettering that average. Instead he rose up and canned a 3 that forced the Bulldogs to press up on him, and loosen its pressure on his four teammates.

Next, Richardson.

With SU trailing by six points and the game clock dripping toward 3 minutes, Richardson caught the ball on the left wing and started down his defender. He could have thought that he was 2-of-11 to that point in the game, 1-of-4 from 3 and as off as he’s been all season — shots missing way wide left, wide right, one even nicking the bottom of the backboard before clanking off the rim. Instead he took one dribble, shook his shoulders to create a sliver of space and uncorked a 3 that splashed through the rim.

Then, Lydon.

The challenge for Syracuse’s defense, at the start of the game, was how to stop 6-foot-11 center Domantas Sabonis, an NBA bound scoring machine whose left-handed hook shot is nearly impossible to deny. That became Lydon’s problem for most of the contest, and he didn’t look like he was giving up 3 inches and 30 pounds. Instead he pushed Sabonis off the block, jostled for position, fouled him hard and crucially held him to four first-half points.

And lastly, with the clock winding down on Syracuse’s season, Lydon stepped out of the paint and blocked a Josh Perkins floater that could have given Gonzaga the win. Instead he walked across the length of the floor and sunk two free throws to seal an Orange victory.

“We don’t think like, ‘Oh we’re freshmen,’” Howard said. “I mean we know we are, but it’s not something you consider while you’re playing. Why would you?”

Twenty minutes after the final buzzer sounded, Lydon fidgeted with the ice packs on both his knees and tuned out Richardson and Howard’s circular banter. Eventually they stopped, and pulled out their phones to scroll through social media. Soon Lydon joined them, taking his iPhone out of his bag and using his thumb to scroll and scroll and scroll through the March madness.

Together, seated three in a row, they almost looked unexcited, unaware or some twisted combination of the two. Their first shot at the NCAA Tournament is unfolding like a storybook and they’re each involved — because being the youngest players on the court has made them refuse to believe that it means a damn thing.

Jesse Dougherty is a Senior Staff Writer at The Daily Orange, where his column appears occasionally. He can be reached at jcdoug01@syr.edu or @dougherty_jesse.

Published on March 26, 2016 at 2:41 am