19 Year Anniversary: Syracuse Basketball's National Championship
Nineteen years have passed since Syracuse sat on top of the college basketball world as the 2003 National Champions. The Orange topped Kansas 81-78 in New Orleans for the program's first NCAA Tournament Title. Nineteen years later to the day. Nineteen years since Carmelo's memorable performance, McNamara's barrage of threes, Duany's dancing, Pace's runners and Warrick's block. Since Jim Boeheim finally got his much deserved title after two previous close calls.
THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM
Carmelo Anthony has told the story numerous times. He could not sleep the night before the game. He was too eager to deliver Boeheim and the city of Syracuse their first title. What both had craved for so long. Fellow freshman sensation Gerry McNamara said the team did not speak specifically about delivering the first title to their coach, but it was something everyone understood.
"I think it was an unspoken understanding," McNamara said in an interview conducted in 2018. "I think everybody kind of understood that we hadn't gotten the big one. We knew that coach had some heartbreak. Certainly '87. I was familiar, more so, with '96 because that was my time growing up and watching college basketball. We knew they were close with some really good teams.
"They just didn't quite get over the hump in the championship game. We knew that if we were be the team to do it, we would be the ones that make our mark and make history."
The team that stood in the way of that history was Kansas. Kansas was seeking the first title for its head coach (Roy Williams) as well, led by seniors Nick Collison and Kirk Hinrich. While Syracuse was led by young stars, Kansas had the experience advantaged. It was because of that Kansas entered the game as five and a half point favorites.
The Jayhawks were one of the best transition teams in the country. Syracuse's game plan focused on stopping that first.
"It was get back (on defense), number one," McNamara said. "I remember the practice after we beat Texas. Everything was predicated on us getting back and making sure we didn't allow early offense. That's the case now with coach (Roy) Williams at North Carolina with how much they like to run and how efficient they are in the open court. And, certainly, what they did to Marquette in the previous National Semifinal.
"We understood that if we were going to beat those guys, we couldn't allow them to get out in transition. As far as us on the offense end, we're a pretty confident group, and we knew we had a go-to guy in Melo. Everybody else was pretty confident playing off of that. Offensively, we always felt comfortable. Defensively, we wanted to get back and force them to make plays in the half court."
Before the game, there was not a special speech. No Hollywood type moment that propelled Syracuse to victory. It was a quiet, unspoken understanding of the task at hand.
"At that point, it seemed to me like business as usual," McNamara said. "I know he wasn't feeling well the day of the game. That could've been nerves or upset stomach or whatever it was. To be quite honest, I didn't really catch much of that until after the game. I was so in to my own head and concentrating on my piece, that I didn't really concentrate on the actions of other people.
"But I know Melo picked up on it and said something to him right before the game. But from my standpoint, we approached it and prepared for it like we did any other game."
Melo's words were simply, "we got this."
THE SIX THREE-POINTERS
Freshman guard Gerry McNamara hit a championship game record six three-pointers in the first half in a dazzling display of confidence, range and marksmanship. It included three-pointers set up by others, a cross over to create his own shot and even one from nearly half court. He told Melo before the game, "I feel it tonight."
"I think going into any game, there's no preconceived notion about what you're going to do," McNamara said. "You always feel like you're going to do well and leave your imprint. But it's not like you're going to go out and make a certain number of shots or certain amount of plays. If I get an opportunity, I'm going to try to capitalize.
"Early in the game, Melo did a good job of attacking the paint and I got some good looks. They sagged off a little bit or tried to touch the paint on his dribble penetration. The one thing I tried to do was relocate. Make myself difficult to find. Once you hit one or two, and they went to the 1-3-1 zone, I expanded the zone a little bit. I knew if I had a little bit of room I was already in rhythm so I was going to launch.
"Then the one after that, the one I took really deep, was kind of just the rhythm shot. The bonus shot. You feel good and have a double digit lead. If you can hit another one, it's almost a deflating make. That was the mindset. The really deep crossover at the top of the key."
McNamara's success was a result of a defensive dilemma for opponents. Syracuse had an elite all around scorer in Anthony that could score off of isolation or creation from others at all three levels. Hakim Warrick was a skilled scorer inside the free throw line with superb footwork. McNamara was as good as it gets from the outside. Then you had Kueth Duany, Josh Pace and Billy Edelin.
"I thought, early on, I was the beneficiary of certainly a great player," McNamara said. "Not just him but Hakim Warrick inside. We had so many great pieces on that team. Coming in, Josh Pace obviously. Billy Edelin, Kueth, there were just a lot of pieces. Any really, really good team, and we saw it this year with Villanova, there's multiple pieces that can hurt you.
"That's why, in the first half, I got some looks. Maybe because of what I did, it freed some other guys in the second half with some more room to work because they had to stick to me. It was just me playing my part."
KANSAS COMES STORMING BACK
Syracuse jumped out to an 18 point lead in the first half and led by 11 at halftime. The Orange maintained a multiple possession lead for most of the second half. Every time Kansas made a run, Syracuse answered.
"The first thing was we have to lock in defensively and get quality defensive possessions," McNamara said of the team's mindset during Kansas runs. "The second thing is, on the other end, we're going to work through Melo. He's been the go-to guy all year and we're just going to play off of that just like every other scenario. That was kind of the case.
"I think the big thing is, when you play a team of that quality, it's a game of runs. When you're playing from behind, and you see it over and over again, the team that plays with desperation can make a big run. They certainly had the talent to do it."
The lead was at the halftime advantage with just under four minutes left. That is when Kansas started to make a push. Back to back buckets trimmed the lead to six when Craig Forth became an unlikely scoring option. Carmelo Anthony had the ball at the top of the key and found Forth wide open under the basket for a dunk. A minute later, Edelin hit a floater to five the Orange a little breathing room once again. But Kansas would not go away.
With just one minute left, a Michael Lee layup trimmed the advantage to three. Syracuse got multiple defensive stops, but struggled to ice the game at the charity stripe. Duany went 1-2 with 24 seconds left and then Warrick missed both with 13.5 seconds left.
"I can't believe (the second one) doesn't go in," McNamara said. "The first one wasn't really all that close. The second one was pure, it just rattled. It rattled hard and aggressive. You've seen that scenario so many times. I think the game has changed a little bit now. Now in that situation, if you could do it all over again, you foul and force them to shoot free-throws which we've done this year. Back then it wasn't really done like that.
"You rely on your defense to make a play as opposed to fouling and play the clock. But with the run they were on, your initial thought is 'oh my gosh they're going to make a shot and send this into overtime.'"
THE BLOCK
Moments later, Warrick would make up for his gaffe at the free throw line. Hinrich found a wide open Lee in the corner with Warrick in the middle of the lane. Despite being nowhere close to the ball, Warrick sprinted towards Lee, leapt and somehow blocked the shot with just over one second left on the clock. It remains one of the best plays in NCAA Tournament history.
"Hakim Warrick makes, rightfully so, one of the greatest plays in the history of this program," McNamara said. "My first thought when (Lee) caught the basketball, is this guys, I think at the time, is their most effective three-point shooter by percentage. He had been shooting it incredibly effectively. He was wide open and my thought was 'oh my gosh, they got it to the guy who is their best shooter over this stretch they've had.
"Warrick covers about 17 feet in one or two strides and used his length to deflect the ball. Not just deflect it, but a clean block out of bounds. The initial thought was this is going to overtime. Then the thought was how much time is left."
Hinrich's desperation three on the ensuing inbounds play was long, and Syracuse was the 2003 National Champions.
CHAMPS AT LAST
"No thoughts, just pure elation," McNamara said. "It was probably the only time in my life that I ran aimlessly. I just ran. I think it was Todd Forcier, our strength and conditioning coach, was grabbing guys and throwing them on the pile. The excitement lasted about three seconds for me until I saw Melo's face. He was being crushed by all of us.
"Then I got a heel kick to the cheek from Kueth Duany being tossed on the pile. His shoe came down and hit me in the face. The pile seems like a fun thing but when you're in it, it's not as enjoyable. But it was just one of those moments that's pure joy. Everything you've every dreamed of and worked for just comes to a head. It's an incredible moment."
THE AFTERMATH
After the final buzzer sounded and the immediate celebration concluded, head coach Jim Boeheim hugged his family while his players jumped and danced with the trophy in hand.
"It's special," McNamara said. "It's a feeling that I still chase even as a coach. You can't quite describe how good it feels to accomplish that goal that you set year in and year out. Just to hold that piece of net up to show to your fanbase, your family, the people who have been there and supported you, it's an indescribable feeling."
As if the emotions of that moment were enough, sometimes the most memorable ones happen away from the cameras.
"I think it all hit me when I saw my father in the hotel at the elevators," McNamara said. "That's when I lost it. Just pure emotion, crying like an infant. It all started with him. Me and him in the gym together. That's when it kind of hit me. We did this. We got it done."
In the private moments following, between players and coaches, it wasn't about the words. The smile on coach Boeheim's face said it all.
"I just remember him shaking his head with a smile on his face," McNamara said. "I don't even know if there was anything said. There wasn't anything that needed to be said. To see someone that's had so much success in this business, that's worked so hard to be in the position he's been in a couple of times but came up a hair short. To finally accomplish what you dreamed of doing, nothing needed to be said.
"It was the look on each other's faces that explained how everybody was feeling."
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