Jim Boeheim couldn’t hold back from screaming until halftime. He had watched too many turnovers, too many misses and too much sloppiness to wait any longer.

So, after Preston Shumpert received a questionable charging violation three minutes before the break, Boeheim launched into a fit of screaming and stomping at official Mike Stewart more energetic than anything his team did in the opening 17 minutes.

A bright red face and a technical foul later, Boeheim slumped into his chair.

‘All the frustration just came out,’ power forward Hakim Warrick said.

Good thing it did. Otherwise, it could have been an excruciating halftime for a Syracuse team that fell behind early and committed 11 turnovers in the first half before surging to a 70-51 win over Colgate at the Carrier Dome.

The Red Raiders (2-2) opened up a 6-0 lead by creating turnovers and forcing bad passes with a full-court press. The early lead forced Boeheim to call timeout with 16,996 fans still clapping in anticipation of the first basket by the Orangemen (6-0).

‘After the few minutes, we can’t get anybody the ball,’ center Craig Forth said. ‘Everybody is still clapping and standing up, and we have to call a timeout. That is kind of embarrassing.’

A floating one-handed runner by Shumpert put fans in their seats less than 30 seconds after the timeout. Still, a stingy Colgate defense and a barrage of SU turnovers led to a 16-15 Colgate lead that kept fans on the edge of their chairs for the first 10 minutes.

‘We knew that we were going to be a little drowsy,’ freshman Josh Pace said. ‘Coach even told us that might happen. He just said to be ready to make a run.’

Pace and his teammates listened. After a Syracuse timeout midway through the first half, the Orangemen broke out with a 12-point run.

Small forward Kueth Duany, who scored a team-high 17 points, seemingly walked directly from the SU timeout huddle to the three-point line. He launched a shot from the right side to give Syracuse the lead. Two minutes later, Duany stole a pass and found Shumpert for another three-pointer. Shumpert hit another jump shot and Duany another trifecta before Colgate could finally stop the bleeding with a basket.

‘Kueth carried us in the first half,’ Boeheim said. ‘And during that run, we pressed a little bit and they missed a couple transition layups. Our pressure was good.’

Their low-post defense was even better. Thanks to Forth and center Jeremy McNeil, Syracuse set a new team record by blocking 16 shots. Forth set personal bests in blocks (seven), points (nine) and rebounds (seven). Still, it was McNeil’s performance that left his teammates amazed.

With 10 minutes to play, the 6-foot-8 sophomore turned away two shots so impressively that he left his teammates laughing in the locker room. McNeil emphatically slapped away a Howard Blue layup attempt like a volleyball player spikes a set. Then, he slid over to the other side of the basket in time to reject Pat Campolieta.

‘If you are a fast-break player, you love to see guys block shots because that is a fast break for me,’ Duany said. ‘We set the record, so that is fun. Blocking shots is just going to make the game more exciting. Especially when Jeremy is the one blocking them.’

‘Even with the slow start, we did a good job inside defensively,’ Boeheim said. ‘They don’t see shot blockers like Jeremy and Craig. That was the difference.’

Published on November 27, 2001 at 12:00 pm