NEW YORK CITY – Syracuse men’s basketball head coach Jim Boeheim said it much clearer the night before: He who does not make shots does not win.

On Thursday night, it was Texas Tech that fell victim to the statement. But on Friday night, the tables turned. It was the Orange offense that went missing when needed most.

No. 16 Syracuse didn’t score during a five-and-a-half-minute stretch late in the second half as Florida pulled away to win 75-70, denying the Orange a second consecutive championship in the 2K Sports Coaches Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer. The closest Syracuse came was a Darryl Watkins put-back, but referees ruled he interfered with Gerry McNamara’s shot over the rim.

During SU’s scoreless period – which lasted until 1:17 remaining in the game – Florida turned a two-point deficit into a 72-62 lead. Six different SU players contributed to 12 consecutive missed shots during that stretch, contributing to Syracuse’s paltry 26.5 shooting percentage after halftime.

‘I think our offense cost us in the second half,’ Boeheim said. ‘We battled back at 60-60 but we made two crucial turnovers and missed a layup. (Al) Horford made a couple of 15-footers and that was really the game. They just made more shots in the second half.’

The dagger was a 3-pointer, culminating a 12-0 UF run, by guard Taurean Green, who scored 23 points for the second consecutive game and was named the tournament MVP. He was one of five Florida players to score in double figures, as the Gators’ showcased an ability to score from inside and out for the second straight night.

It was a lack of balance that doomed the Orange. In the first half, forward Demetris Nichols had the hot hand from outside with four 3s and totaled 18 points. In the second half, Terrence Roberts took over with short jumpers in the lane for 12 points. Through it all was McNamara’s 3s and running two-pointers in the lane. But there was never more than one option clicking at once. Take away that one, and disaster.

‘We probably missed over the last five minutes a couple easy 3s and a couple easy layups,’ McNamara said. ‘In any other situation, we make those shots and those layups, but tonight for some reason we couldn’t get them to go in and that was the difference right there.’

Nichols finished with a game-high 24 points; Roberts 16. McNamara warned all fall it’s a bad sign when he forces shots. That proved true against Florida as he shot only 5-of-19 from the field to finish with 13 points. The fourth SU player in double-figures was sixth man Eric Devendorf’s 10.

Florida put the game out of reach by going inside on Syracuse’s man-to-man defense. The Orange deserted its patented zone late in the first half because the Gators’ Green and Lee Humphrey each drilled four 3-pointers.

Forward Joakim Noah’s keyed an 11-0 Florida run shortly after halftime to put Florida ahead 56-47. When Roberts led SU’s comeback, eventually putting it up 62-60, it was Horford and backup Chris Richard who directed the 12-0 run.

‘Mental lapses on defense down the stretch really killed us,’ Roberts said.

SU ended up with a 44-43 lead at halftime because Nichols matched Green and Humphrey’s 3-point barrage. At one point, Humphrey scored nine straight points for Florida and Nichols scored eight of 10 for Syracuse in a personal duel. The game slowed considerably when the Orange shifted to a man-to-man defense, but Syracuse still couldn’t keep up on both sides of the ball.

‘We have to play 40 minutes and we didn’t do that,’ McNamara said. ‘We came out sluggish and let them get hot early and that carries over. Anytime you do that teams are going to carry that momentum for the rest of the game, and we just didn’t do a good job of coming out early and setting the tone.’

So there is no answer yet to the biggest question coming into the season for the Orange – who will step up offensively without Hakim Warrick. But Boeheim, for one, wasn’t concerned about that. He knows his team is still finding itself this early in the season.

‘Most teams haven’t played a game yet,’ Boeheim said. ‘So we’ve learned a lot of things at this stage that put us a little ahead of where we would normally be.’

Published on November 18, 2005 at 12:00 pm