Triche gets Orange to even dozen
SYRACUSE — Brandon Triche runs the floor. He shoots the three, and attacks the basket, too.
This is exactly why Syracuse men's basketball coach Jim Boeheim wanted Triche to come to Syracuse University, and the Jamesville product gave 18,669 fans quite a show during the Orange's nonconference finale Tuesday night at the Carrier Dome.
Triche turned in a career-high 27 points as the No. 5 ranked Orange (12-0) ran away from visiting Oakland (Mich.) University, 92-60.
Oakland (6-7) couldn't stop the 6-foot-4 freshman guard.
Whether he was canning all six of his 3-point attempts, or converting reverse layups to finish off half-court bounce passes from Andy Rautins, Triche was simply the best player on the floor in the Orange's final outing before its Big East campaign begins Dec. 29.
"I was taking a few more shots than usual. Once I knocked down the first two, my confidence went way up," said Triche, who entered the game averaging 10.1 points.
Rautins was Triche's biggest enabler, offering most of his nine assists to his fellow Jamesville-DeWitt High School alum.
"We're just enjoying watching him blossom," Rautins said of Triche. "He's going to be a heck of a player."
An 11-3 first-half spurt helped SU open up a 15-point halftime advantage. And a 12-2 stretch sparked the Orange to a 30-point edge about midway through the second half.
According to Boeheim, that's what was supposed to happen. And the veteran coach isn't putting too much stock in his team's unblemished record.
He's barely even considering the fact anymore that SU has knocked off three top 15 opponents, and shot to near the top of the national polls.
That was the easy part, Boeheim believes. The real test will come in seven days when the team travels to Seton Hall for the conference opener.
"Those are marginal teams if you look at what they've done recently," Boeheim said of his team's wins over California, North Carolina and Florida. "We don't know anything until we get into the conference."
What Boeheim does like, though, is the unselfish play he's seen in the backcourt through 12 outings.
He recognizes the offensive losses his team endured when Johnny Flynn and Eric Devendorf departed. But he's noticed this year's guards seem to be as equally concerned with the assist column as they are the score sheet. That's not to say Rautins and Co. can't fill the basket when they're called upon, however.
"They're all unselfish," Boeheim said. "Nobody looks to only score."
"They look to pass first. We had 24 assists tonight. That's everybody looking for everybody."
Wes Johnson, who has scored in double-figures in 11 of the Orange's 12 victories, added 19 points and 11 rebounds, while Rick Jackson tallied 14 points.
Drew Maynard came off the bench to lead Oakland with 18 points.
But this was Triche's night.
He said he took advantage of double-teams on Jackson and Johnson, and his total was just six points shy of the school's freshman scoring record (33) set by Carmelo Anthony against Texas during the 2003 Final Four.
"I guess I have about 20 more games to get that," he said. "With the double teams on the guys down low, I might expect to get open looks all season."
"That was a competitive game until he knocked down some shots," Boeheim said. "Tonight he had an exceptional night, but he's a pretty good shooter."
NO. 11 CONNECTICUT 71, MAINE 54
Jerome Dyson scored 22 of his 27 points in the second half when Connecticut pulled away to a victory over Maine at Hartford, Conn.
Stanley Robinson added 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Huskies (8-2), who broke from a 26-all halftime tie. Kemba Walker had nine assists for UConn, but scored four points on 1-of-10 shooting from the field.
PITTSBURGH 74, OHIO 49
Ashton Gibbs scored 15 points and Pittsburgh jumped out to a 17-point lead in the first 81/2 minutes before easing to a victory over Ohio in Pittsburgh, the Panthers' final game before starting Big East play.
Pittsburgh (10-2) led 4-3 with 90 seconds gone before going on a 16-0 run over the next seven minutes, stretching its lead to 20-3. Ohio (7-4) had won three in a row, only to miss 14 of its first 15 shots.
CINCINNATI 74, WINTHROP 57
Yancy Gates scored 14 of his 16 points in the first half in Cincinnati, and Cincinnati held off a late Winthrop run for a 74-57 victory in its final nonconference game before getting into Big East play.
Playing its first game since dropping out of the Top 25, Cincinnati (8-3) pulled ahead by 19 points with the help of Gates' big first half, then held on despite a sloppy showing down the stretch.
SETON HALL 94, NAVY 56
Jordan Theodore scored 18 points and Jeremy Hazell added 17 points, including 11 straight during one stretch, leading Seton Hall to a victory over Navy at Newark, N.J.
Hazell scored 11 straight points in the second half as the Pirates (9-1) gradually pulled away from the Midshipmen (4-8).
RUTGERS 66, ST. PETER'S 42
Hamady Ndiaye's shot blocking is becoming contagious.
Ndiaye had a career high for the second straight game as he blocked 10 shots and scored 15 points to help Rutgers to a victory over St. Peter's at Piscataway, N.J.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
