2002–03 Syracuse Orangemen men's basketball
NCAA tournament National champions
Big East regular season co-champions
ConferenceBig East Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 1
APNo. 13
Record30–5 (13–3 Big East)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaCarrier Dome
2002–03 Big East men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
East
Boston College106 .6251912  .613
No. 23 Connecticut106 .6252310  .697
Providence88 .5001814  .563
Villanova88 .5001516  .484
St. John's79 .4382113  .618
Miami412 .2501117  .393
Virginia Tech*412 .2501118  .379
West
No. 13 Syracuse133 .813305  .857
No. 4 Pittsburgh133 .813285  .848
Seton Hall106 .6251713  .567
No. 22 Notre Dame106 .6252410  .706
Georgetown610 .3751915  .559
West Virginia511 .3131415  .483
Rutgers*412 .2501216  .429
2003 Big East tournament winner
As of March 31, 2003[1]
Rankings from AP Poll
*Did not qualify for 2003 Big East tournament

The 2002–03 Syracuse Orangemen basketball team represented Syracuse University in NCAA men's basketball competition in the 2002–03 Division I season. The head coach was Jim Boeheim, serving for his 27th year. The team played its home games at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York. The team finished with a 30–5 (13–3) record, while capturing its first modern-era NCAA Championship.

The team had just one senior, guard Kueth Duany. He was joined in the starting lineup by forwards Hakim Warrick (sophomore), Carmelo Anthony (freshman), center Craig Forth (sophomore), and guard Gerry McNamara (freshman). Other key contributors included guards Josh Pace (sophomore) and Billy Edelin (freshman), and center Jeremy McNeil (junior).

Season recap

Things did not start well for Syracuse. Guards DeShaun Williams[2] and James Thues[3] both left the team. Williams transferred to Iona while Thues left for Detroit. Freshman point guard Billy Edelin was suspended for 12 games for participating in a non-sanctioned basketball league. Syracuse then started its season with a loss against Memphis, despite Carmelo Anthony's 27 points, a then-high for a Syracuse freshman debut.[4]

But things turned around, as Syracuse went 13–3 in the Big East, with several memorable wins. McNamara would establish himself as a clutch player, nailing a game-winning 3-pointer as then-No. 17 Syracuse notched an 82–80 win over then-No. 10 Notre Dame in February.[5] In an upset of then-No. 24 Syracuse over then-No. 2 Pittsburgh, McNeil, a career 49.1% free throw shooter, hit two key free throws, and added a game-winning tip in a 67–65 upset.[6]

The Orangemen would play five Big 12 teams throughout the year, including games against Missouri[7] in the regular season, and against Oklahoma (Elite Eight), Oklahoma State (second round), Texas (National Semifinal) and then Kansas (National Championship game).[8]

In the championship game against Kansas, with Syracuse leading by three with under 15 seconds left, Warrick missed two free throws that would've sealed the game with Syracuse hanging on to a three-point lead, 81–78. With 1.5 seconds left and the score still the same, Kansas' Michael Lee was open on the baseline for a potential game-tying 3-pointer. But Warrick used his long arms to block Lee's attempt and Syracuse captured its first-ever national championship.[9]

Coincidentally, the game was played in the Superdome in New Orleans, where Syracuse had lost the National Championship to Indiana in 1987 on a last-second shot by Keith Smart.[10]

Schedule

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
Nov 14, 2002*
vs. Memphis
Coaches vs. Cancer Classic
L 63–70  0–1
 27  Anthony  11  Tied  3  McNamara  Madison Square Garden (8,826)
New York, NY
Nov 24, 2002*
Valparaiso W 81–66  1–1
 28  Anthony  10  Tied  6  Pace  Carrier Dome (18,874)
Syracuse, NY
Dec 3, 2002*
Colgate W 98–68  2–1
 27  Anthony  11  Anthony  7  Pace  Carrier Dome (15,615)
Syracuse, NY
Dec 6, 2002*
Cornell W 85–62  3–1
 21  Anthony  10  Tied  5  Tied  Carrier Dome (16,384)
Syracuse, NY
Dec 10, 2003*
UNC Greensboro W 92–65  4–1
 23  Warrick  8  Forth  4  Anthony  Carrier Dome (16,941)
Syracuse, NY
Dec 14, 2002*
Binghamton W 94–58  5–1
 24  Anthony  11  Anthony  5  Anthony  Carrier Dome (19,770)
Syracuse, NY
Dec 21, 2002*
Georgia Tech W 92–65  6–1
 25  McNamara  11  Tied  10  McNamara  Carrier Dome (18,804)
Syracuse, NY
Dec 28, 2002*
Albany W 109–79  7–1
 28  Anthony  9  Tied  9  McNamara  Carrier Dome (18,683)
Syracuse, NY
Dec 30, 2002*
Canisius W 87–69  8–1
 25  Warrick  14  Anthony  3  Tied  Carrier Dome (17,305)
Syracuse, NY
Jan 8, 2003
at Seton Hall W 70–66  9–1
(1–0)
 20  Duany  7  Warrick  5  McNamara  Continental Airlines Arena (8,415)
East Rutherford, NJ
Jan 11, 2003
Boston College W 82–74  10–1
(2–0)
 24  Tied  15  Warrick  5  Tied  Carrier Dome (20,692)
Syracuse, NY
Jan 13, 2003*
, ESPN
No. 11 Missouri W 76–69  11–1
 20  Warrick  10  Anthony  7  McNamara  Carrier Dome (18,756)
Syracuse, NY
Jan 18, 2003
at No. 3 Pittsburgh L 60–73  11–2
(2–1)
 19  McNamara  10  Warrick  3  McNamara  Petersen Events Center (12,508)
Pittsburgh, PA
Jan 22, 2003
Seton Hall W 83–65  12–2
(3–1)
 22  Warrick  10  Warrick  6  Tied  Carrier Dome (17,119)
Syracuse, NY
Jan 26, 2003
, CBS
at Miami W 54–49  13–2
(4–1)
 18  Warrick  14  Anthony  4  Tied  Ryder Center (5,789)
Coral Gables, FL
Jan 29, 2003
at Rutgers L 65–68  13–3
(4–2)
 17  Anthony  11  Warrick  5  Tied  Louis Brown Athletic Center (8,007)
Piscataway, NJ
Feb 1, 2003
No. 2 Pittsburgh W 67–65  14–3
(5–2)
 20  Warrick  13  Anthony  4  McNamara  Carrier Dome (30,303)
Syracuse, NY
Feb 3, 2003
No. 21 Georgetown W 88–80  15–3
(6–2)
 22  Tied  7  Tied  3  Tied  Carrier Dome (20,702)
Syracuse, NY
Feb 8, 2003
No. 21 at West Virginia W 94–80  16–3
(7–2)
 29  Anthony  12  Anthony  12  McNamara  WVU Coliseum (13,092)
Morgantown, WV
Feb 10, 2003
No. 18 at No. 19 Connecticut L 61–75  16–4
(7–3)
 29  Anthony  11  Anthony  4  McNamara  Hartford Civic Center (16,294)
Hartford, CT
Feb 15, 2003
No. 18 No. 9 Notre Dame W 82–80  17–4
(8–3)
 26  Anthony  12  Warrick  6  McNamara  Carrier Dome (32,116)
Syracuse, NY
Feb 18, 2003
No. 17 St. John's W 66–60  18–4
(9–3)
 21  Anthony  13  Anthony  5  McNamara  Carrier Dome (21,044)
Syracuse, NY
Feb 23, 2003*
, CBS
No. 17 at Michigan State W 76–75  19–4
 25  Anthony  8  Warrick  4  Anthony  Breslin Center (14,759)
East Lansing, MI
Feb 26, 2003
No. 15 West Virginia W 89–51  20–4
(10–3)
 24  Anthony  10  Anthony  6  McNamara  Carrier Dome (19,484)
Syracuse, NY
Mar 1, 2003
, ABC
No. 15 at Georgetown W 93–84 OT 21–4
(11–3)
 30  Anthony  18  Warrick  2  Tied  MCI Center (17,352)
Washington, D.C.
Mar 4, 2003
No. 12 No. 16 Notre Dame W 92–88  22–4
(12–3)
 26  Edelin  13  Warrick  7  Warrick  Joyce Center (11,450)
South Bend, IN
Mar 9, 2003
No. 12 Rutgers W 83–74  23–4
(13–3)
 30  Anthony  14  Anthony  7  McNamara  Carrier Dome (33,071)
Syracuse, NY
Big East tournament
Mar 13, 2003
(1 W) No. 11 vs. (5 W) Georgetown
Quarterfinals
W 74–69  24–4
 21  Anthony  8  Forth  3  McNamara  Madison Square Garden (19,528)
New York, NY
Mar 14, 2003
(1 W) No. 11 vs. (2 E) Connecticut
Semifinals
L 67–80  24–5
 29  Anthony  15  Anthony  3  McNamara  Madison Square Garden (19,528)
New York, NY
NCAA tournament
Mar 21, 2003*
, CBS
(3 E) No. 13 vs. (14 E) Manhattan
First Round
W 76–65  25–5
 17  Anthony  9  Anthony  4  Tied  FleetCenter (18,141)
Boston, MA
Mar 23, 2003*
, CBS
(3 E) No. 13 vs. (6 E) No. 23 Oklahoma State
Second Round
W 68–56  26–5
 20  Edelin  6  McNamara  8  Tied  FleetCenter (18,389)
Boston, MA
Mar 28, 2003*
, CBS
(3 E) No. 13 vs. (10 E) Auburn
Sweet Sixteen
W 79–78  27–5
 18  Anthony  8  Anthony  4  Edelin  Pepsi Arena (15,093)
Albany, NY
Mar 30, 2003*
, CBS
(3 E) No. 13 vs. (1 E) No. 3 Oklahoma
Elite Eight
W 63–47  28–5
 20  Anthony  10  Anthony  4  Warrick  Pepsi Arena (15,207)
Albany, NY
Apr 5, 2003*
, CBS
(3 E) No. 13 vs. (1 S) No. 5 Texas
Final Four
W 95–84  29–5
 33  Anthony  14  Anthony  4  Tied  Louisiana Superdome (54,432)
New Orleans, LA
Apr 7, 2003*
, CBS
(3 E) No. 13 vs. (2 W) No. 6 Kansas
National Championship
W 81–78  30–5
 20  Anthony  10  Anthony  7  Anthony  Louisiana Superdome (54,524)
New Orleans, LA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Roster

Name Number Position Height Weight Year Hometown PPG APG RPG
Hakim Warrick 1 F 6–9 219 Sophomore Philadelphia, PA 14.8 1.6 8.5
Gerry McNamara 3 G 6–2 182 Freshman Scranton, PA 13.3 4.4 2.3
Josh Pace 5 G/F 6–5 190 Sophomore Griffin, GA 4.3 1.9 2.7
Kueth Duany 13 G/F 6–6 190 Senior Sudan/Bloomington, IN 11.0 2.0 3.7
Billy Edelin 14 G 6–4 195 Freshman Silver Spring, MD 9.0 2.5 3.4
Carmelo Anthony 15 F 6–8 230 Freshman Baltimore, MD 22.2 2.2 10.0
Matt Gorman 24 F/C 6–9 235 Freshman Watertown, NY 2.3 0.1 2.1
Jeremy McNeil 34 C 6–8 257 Junior San Antonio, TX 3.3 0.2 4.2
Craig Forth 51 C 7–1 255 Sophomore Albany, NY 3.8 0.9 3.3
Andrew Kouwe 10 PG 6–0 170 Junior Tampa, FL 1.7 0.3 0.3
Ronneil Herron 11 G 5–11 158 Senior Warner Robins, GA 1.2 0.0 1.0
Tyrone Albright 2 G 5–11 165 Junior Syracuse, NY 0.0 0.1 0.3
Gary Hall 23 F 6–6 230 Junior Tully, NY 0.4 0.4 0.4
Josh Brooks 21 F 6–5 180 Junior Saranac, NY 0.0 0.0 0.2

References

  • "The Inside Look at Carmelo Anthony and Syracuse's 2003 National Championship Run". Bleacher Report. March 20, 2018. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021 via YouTube.
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