On one Syracuse possession late in Saturday’s first half, Buddy Boeheim received a pass on the right wing with his 18-month older brother, Cornell’s Jimmy Boeheim, in a defensive stance in front of him. The Carrier Dome crowd’s noise level rose in anticipation. Buddy jab-stepped twice, but then just passed the ball off. On a night when SU head coach Jim Boeheim’s sons played against each other, that was about as close as they came to going one-on-one.

“I was so worried about the game and what was going on, I wasn’t really thinking about that to be honest with you,” Boeheim said. “I really wasn’t. Their mother can think about that. I’m thinking about trying to get us to play better.”

In the end, Boeheim and Buddy came out on top, as Syracuse (5-2) beat Cornell (4-4) and Jimmy, 63-55, in the Carrier Dome. Buddy made one of his two 3-point attempts. Jimmy tallied nine points, six rebounds and four assists. The two bumped hips a few times on the floor, and Jimmy guarded Buddy on at least two possessions. Cornell hung around, but in the end Syracuse found the edge.

“It’s tough because we really were right there, we had a really good chance to win,” Jimmy said. “It’s definitely in my mind. It might be there for a while.”

Alexandra Moreo | Senior Staff Photographer

When Jimmy checked in first, with 15:03 to go in the first half, the crowd cheered at a decent volume. He grabbed a couple boards and an assist, and then about four minutes into his court time, he leaked out as Steven Julian grabbed a steal.

Julian led Jimmy toward the basket, and even as SU’s Elijah Hughes trailed the play looking to pin Jimmy’s shot to the backboard, the sophomore didn’t waver.

“He’s starting to realize how tall and long he is,” Cornell star Matt Morgan said of Jimmy. “Offensively and defensively he can get to the rim whenever he wants to.”

Naturally right-handed but a lefty jump shooter, Jimmy got to the glass with his right hand and finished for two. He knocked down a 3 a few possessions later. Juli Boeheim and Jamie Boeheim, Jim’s wife and daughter, stood and cheered with two other people who’d accompanied them. They were the only group in their section of the Carrier Dome cheering.

“He hasn’t made any 3s,” Boeheim exaggerated. “He would have to make one against us.”

Two minutes after Jimmy’s 3, Buddy answered with one of his own. He’d missed his first attempt from beyond the arc, but when Frank Howard swung the ball to Buddy on the left wing, he rose up and knocked it down.

Again, Juli and Jamie stood and cheered. They weren’t the only ones, that time.

“Buddy got a good look, and he had another chance to get a good look and we’re not smart enough to get him the ball,” Boeheim said.

Alexandra Moreo | Senior Staff Photographer

At one point in their time on the court together, Jimmy and Buddy lined up along the free throw lane. For most of the game, Jimmy said he didn’t think about the fact that they were playing each other.

But lined up next to each other, Jimmy noticed.

“He came down and stood next to me,” Jimmy said. “And I was like wow, that’s pretty crazy. In that moment, it clicked.”

With 18 seconds to go and Syracuse finally having stemmed a Cornell rally, Jimmy took one more shot. He caught the ball near the top of the key, drove right, and put it off glass over Marek Dolezaj, again with his right hand.

Then with five seconds left, Boeheim subbed Buddy back in for the closing seconds. When the buzzer sounded, the family didn’t leave the court yet. Instead, Jamie and Juli joined the three competitors.

They had to pose for a photo.

“My mom told me that was gonna happen,” Jimmy said. “I tried to run out of there before. But she grabbed me, and I don’t think I really had a choice … She wants that to be our Christmas card.”

Senior Staff Writer Matthew Gutierrez and Senior Staff Photographer Alexandra Moreo contributed reporting.

Published on December 2, 2018 at 12:12 am

Contact Billy: wmheyen@syr.edu | @Wheyen3