Orangeyes Daily Articles for Monday - for Basketball | Syracusefan.com

Orangeyes Daily Articles for Monday for Basketball

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Welcome to Balloon Ascension Day!

The very first Balloon Ascension Day was every bit as exciting as it sounds. A man named Jean Paul Blanchard, who was a French aeronaut and inventor, stood in front of Walnut Street Prison in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in a spot that is now known as Independence Square, making some last-minute adjustments to his balloon, while a sizable crowd looked on. Blachard had been preparing for this for a while, and he had sold plenty of tickets to people excited to see him ascend into the sky in his hydrogen-filled gas balloon. In fact, Blachard was so good at creating a buzz about his project that it is thought that most of the entire capital city’s population had come to the prison courtyard to watch, and a great many from the surrounding countryside as well. In fact, the president of the Unite States, George Washington himself, was also present.

Some of the onlookers tried to convince Blachard to let them go with him, but he refused, determined to be the first person to ever ascend into the air in the New World. And then…up he went, reaching an altitude of 200 fathoms during the course of his flight. He monitored his pulse during the entirety of the trip, finally coming down gently in the field of a confused farmer who helped him get back. And so, on January 9th, 1793, the first balloon flight ever to take place in North America was declared a success, and balloon travel became more popular.


SU News


Could energy, effort really be difference in Syracuse's last two games? - The Juice Online (the juice; Sears)

In Syracuse, winter hits hard. It often begins before Halloween and keeps on coming until close to Mother’s Day. The only thing that keeps this town from collapsing in on itself in Vitamin-D-deficient rage is Orange basketball.

That’s why a year like this, with so much potential seemingly going wasted can be so frustrating. What makes it worse is that no one can really explain the slump.

Fans and the media pointed the finger in every direction: at the zone defense, at the point guards, at Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, at player positions, even at the NCAA sanctions. Nobody could figure out why this hyped Syracuse team just couldn’t live up to even the lowest expectations.

The answer, thus far, is so simple it’s infuriating: Effort. Simple trying.

After SU’s win against Miami—its first against a high-major opponent this season—Tyus Battle, Andrew White, and Tyler Lydon all cited “energy” as the key to their win.

After Saturday’s win over Pittsburgh, players pointed to “active” defense and playing with “aggression” and “energy” again. Boeheim mentioned his team’s “active” play as an important factor in the improvement over the last few games.

White called it “urgency.”
...

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Pitt struggles in 77-66 loss to Syracuse (post-gazette.com; Meyer)

As the minutes ticked away Saturday, as Syracuse's shots continued to fall at a dizzying rate and as Pitt found seemingly every way it could to not score, the inevitability of what was unfolding began to begrudgingly set in. This simply wasn't the Panthers' day.

In a stretch of eight minutes in the first half, the Orange scored 22 unanswered points, picking apart the opposing defense and even in sequences in which it didn't, made otherwise improbable shots with a snowballing sense of confidence. On the other end, Pitt's normally potent offense had no answers. It coughed up turnovers, missed jumpers, had attempts close to the basket swatted back and, as was the case with Sheldon Jeter late in the half, even missed dunks.

In the cavernous confines of the largest arena in college basketball, Pitt felt helpless, faced with an onslaught that, regardless of what it tried to do, seemed to only get worse with time.

What turned out to be a 77-66 loss at the Carrier Dome was decided in that eight-minute period and it sends the Panthers (12-4, 1-2 ACC) back to where they were after an overtime loss a week ago against Notre Dame -- searching for answers and forced to regroup as a daunting schedule continues to lurk.

"I would say that we have enough experience out there with Jamel [Artis] and Chris [Jones] to run good offense," Pitt coach Kevin Stallings said. "We just didn't. We just didn't execute well and they played well in the first half. And then that roll starts and they start making shots and they're all hyped and their energy gets way up because every shot they look at goes in, then you've got the snowball going in the wrong direction for you."
...

Virginia Tech Basketball Entering Pivotal Stretch (fightinggobbler.com; McDaniel)

The Virginia Tech Men’s Basketball NCAA Tournament hopes may very well hang in the balance in the upcoming homestand.
Well that was a swift fall from grace, wasn’t it?

Nobody thought that it would be easy, but the Virginia Tech Men’s Basketball Team certainly was on a roll early this season, lulling many fans and observers into a false sense of security.


The Hokies cruised through non-conference play, dispatching opponents left and right with the exception of the lone blemish, a second half collapse to SEC-foe Texas A&M the week of Thanksgiving.

By the time the dawn of the New Year rolled around, Virginia Tech was staring their first conference opponent, the fifth-ranked Duke Blue Devils, down the barrel with an 11-1 record entering play. The Hokies came out in a fury on New Year’s Eve, smoking the Blue Devils 89-75 behind 18 points from junior wing Justin Bibbs, and an emphatic dunk at the end of the blowout to put a signature on the rout.

The exclamation point!!! The exclamation point!!!

— Treadmill Horse (@treadmillhorse) December 31, 2016

The college basketball world was on notice, as the Hokies entered the first week of 2017 ranked #21 in the nation. It was the first time that Virginia Tech has been ranked since 2010.

However, the Hokies did not respond well to their first taste of true success under Buzz Williams, as Virginia Tech followed their 12-1 start with back-to-back road losses against NC State and #12 Florida State.
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Other

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Cuomo to reveal plan to bring Uber, Lyft to Upstate New York (PS; Axelson)

Gov. Andrew Cuomo will reveal his plan for bringing ride sharing services like Uber and Lyft to Upstate New York on Monday.

The governor is expected to reveal his proposal during one of his regional State of the State addresses in Buffalo, The Poughkeepsie Journal reported.

Cuomo's plan would have the state oversee Uber and Lyft, rather than local governments, which oversee and permit taxis. The state could then audit the companies to make sure they are complying with all laws and regulations.

Uber and Lyft currently operate in New York City under the city's taxi laws.

The companies would also be required to tack on a 2.5 percent surcharge to all fares to contribute to The Black Car Fund, which covers drivers who are injured on the job.

"It defies logic that ride-sharing isn't available to New Yorkers who live outside of New York City," Cuomo said in a statement on Saturday. "My message is Upstate New York matters and it's not right or fair that Upstate doesn't have this new innovation that spurs the economy, can save money and save lives."

Further details on the plan were not released, but are expected to be revealed on Monday. Uber and Lyft have sought a change in state law so that they can take out "pooled" insurance coverage for their drivers which covers them only when they are working for the company.

That became a contentious issue for lawmakers trying to expand Uber last summer, and ultimately led to the bill's demise.
...
 

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