sutomcat
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Ben Franklin Statue in Franklin Square Park Syracuse, NY April 2023 Catherine Stolz
Welcome to Ben Franklin Day!
Founding Father Benjamin Franklin was born on this day in 1706, in Boston, making today Ben Franklin Day. He was a polymath, or expert in many subjects. Some of the titles that could be given to him are inventor, scientist, politician, diplomat, civic activist, printer, author, postmaster, and mapmaker. He also founded or was a part of many organizations and groups.
Franklin was the tenth and youngest son of a soap and candle maker, Josiah Franklin, and Josiah's second wife, Abiah Folger. The elder Franklin wanted his son to follow the path of a preacher, but did not have the money to send him to school. Benjamin only attended school up until the age of ten, when he began working full-time in his father's shop. At the age of twelve he was sent to apprentice his older brother James, who was a printer. James started The New England Courant in Boston when Benjamin was fifteen. Benjamin wanted to be printed in the paper, but James would not allow it. So, he wrote letters under name of Silence Dogood, a fictional widow, and slid them under the print shop door at night. The fourteen letters he wrote were published; they gave advice and were filled with critical observations of the world. Benjamin eventually confessed to writing them, and James was not happy. Later, after harassment and beating at the hands of his brother, Benjamin ended up running away to New York, and then ended up in Philadelphia in 1723.
SU News
Syracuse guard Quadir Copeland (24) dives on a loose ball in the Orange's win over Pittsburgh on Tuesday at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, Pa. (Scott Schild | sschild@syracuse.com) Scott Schild | sschild@syracuse.com
How a Saturday night film session led to much-needed win at Pitt (PS; $; Waters)
The Syracuse basketball team; players and coaches, returned to Syracuse on Saturday after an embarrassing 103-67 loss to North Carolina.
The team got off the plane, boarded a bus and headed back to the Carmelo K. Anthony Center where the players all filed into a film room where they watched the North Carolina game all over again.
“It was different. Painful,’’ Syracuse guard Judah Mintz said of the somber film session.
Three days after absorbing the basketball program’s worst defeat in over 15 years, the Orange players went out and handily defeated the Pittsburgh Panthers, 69-58, here at the Petersen Events Center on Tuesday night.
Some of the Syracuse players said they took the memory of the UNC debacle into Tuesday’s game, using it as a motivational fuel.
“I’ve never lost by that much in my life,’’ Mintz said. “I don’t want to feel like that again.’’
Others said they had flushed the residue of the loss from their heads, preferring a mental cleanse.
“I always say, even after the wins, we’re always looking to the next game,’’ SU sophomore Quadir Copeland said. “You can’t do too much about the present except try to make the present and future better.’’
After giving up 53 first-half points to North Carolina, Syracuse held Pitt to its second-lowest point total of the season. The Orange locked up the Panthers’ perimeter threats, forcing Pitt into 5-for-26 shooting from beyond the 3-point line.
Offensively, Syracuse played with an efficiency that had been lacking on Saturday. The Orange connected on 10 of its 17 3-point shots with seven different players making at least one three.
Syracuse coach Adrian Autry called it, “one of our more complete games of the year.’’
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Syracuse Orange guard JJ Starling (2) celebrates a three pointer from the corner against Pittsburgh at the Petersen Events Center, Pittsburgh, PA, Tuesday January 16, 2024 (Scott Schild | sschild@syracuse.com) Scott Schild | sschild@syracuse.com
Starling emerges against Pitt in SU basketball win: ‘I just felt like myself’ (PS; $: Ditota)
JJ Starling felt it during warmups.
Every shot felt good leaving his hand, he said. Everything felt right.
“I just felt like myself today, to be honest,” he said.
That feeling prevailed through the 35 minutes and 56 seconds Starling played against Pittsburgh Tuesday night in the Petersen Events Center. The Syracuse sophomore scored 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting. He made two of the five shots he attempted from the 3-point line.
He grabbed three rebounds. And on the defensive end, he covered Carlton Carrington, the young Pitt guard who came into the game averaging 14.3 points. Carrington was 0-for-10 overall Tuesday and 0-for-7 from the 3-point line. The Orange won, 69-58.
“JJ, he came to play today,” SU coach Adrian Autry said. “That was his best game in the uniform. He defended. He made big shots. I thought he was aggressive and attacked.”
Starling, of course, grew up in Baldwinsville, where he was such a hot high school basketball commodity, prep schools competed for his attention. He landed at Midwest powerhouse La Lumiere, committed to Notre Dame and after one season, came home to Syracuse and the coaches he had known most of his life.
He has talked this season of the struggles he’s endured this year. A deadly perimeter shooter in high school, a shoulder injury last season required an alteration to his shooting mechanics. He has spent mountains of time trying to regain the form that helped anoint him a McDonald’s All-American.
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Axe: Unexpected factors lead to SU's get-right win over Pitt (podcast) (PS; $; podcast; Axe)
Seven different Syracuse University men’s basketball players hit a shot from beyond the arc against Pittsburgh on Tuesday night.
Wait, what?
We are talking about the 2023-24 Syracuse basketball team, right? The one that entered Tuesday’s game against the Panthers near the bottom of the conference (and country, for that matter) in 3-point shooting?
Yup. Same one.
Syracuse’s 3-point shooting and another unexpected factor led to the 69-58 victory over the Panthers in a needed get-right win after a brutal 107-63 loss to UNC, its worst loss in ACC play.
We talked about it all on Syracuse basketball postgame presented by Crouse Health.
Syracuse Basketball: Top takeaways as ‘Cuse scores critical road win at Pittsburgh (itlh; Adler)
Syracuse basketball put its rough outing last Saturday afternoon at then-No. 7 North Carolina in the rear-view mirror, as the Orange picked up a huge Atlantic Coast Conference victory on the road versus long-time rival Pittsburgh on Tuesday evening.
In doing so, the ‘Cuse swept its 2023-24 regular-season series with the Panthers. What’s more, at least as of Tuesday night, the Orange notched a pivotal quadrant-one triumph, given that Pitt had an NCAA NET ranking of No. 68.
After shooting dreadfully from long distance at the Tar Heels in a 103-67 setback to UNC in Chapel Hill, N.C., on Saturday afternoon, the ‘Cuse flipped the script against the Panthers, as Syracuse basketball was excellent from beyond the arc.
In besting Pitt by a final count of 69-58, the Orange (12-5, 3-3 in the ACC) also secured its first road win in league play during the 2023-24 campaign.
Syracuse basketball improves to 76-50 in its all-time series with the Panthers (10-7, 1-5 in the ACC), and now the ‘Cuse will possess a three-game homestand coming up.
My top observations as Syracuse basketball conquered Pitt on the road.
•Sophomore guard J.J. Starling, the Central New York native, was fabulous. He went 7-of-11 from the field, hitting several tough mid-range jumpers and finishing with a team-high 17 points.
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https://www.si.com/college/pittsburgh/basketball/pitt-panthers-jaland-lowe-enjoys-career-night (SI; Markowski)
Despite the Pitt Panthers' recent slide, the development of Jaland Lowe bodes well for the program's future.
Lowe was the lone bright spot in the Panthers' loss to Syracuse on Tuesday night. He recorded a career-high 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field to go with three assists, three rebounds and a steal in 32 minutes.
He stated that his strong play, particularly in the second half, was motivated by his will to win and be a source of energy for the team as they looked to complete the comeback.
"I just wanted to win," Lowe said "That was the only thing on my mind. I wanted to give us a spark, be that guy that just stepped up, try and ignite guys ... I just wanted to be that spark for everybody.”
Lowe has seen a steady uptick in his production all season, but his recent transition into the starting lineup has cranked his play to another gear. In his three games as a starter, Lowe is averaging 12.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1 steal on 45.2% shooting from the field and 57.1% shooting from three-point range.
Lowe's speed and ball-handling ability add a needed dynamic to Pitt's offense that wasn't present beforehand. It's also clear that the coaching staff's trust in him has steadily risen in recent weeks as he earned the starting nod over Ishmael Leggett for the second consecutive game.
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Pitt Underperforms Again, Drops Another Loss to Syracuse, 69-58 (pittsbughsportsnow; Michalowski)
Make that five ACC losses in Pitt’s first six tries.
On Tuesday night, Jeff Capel’s Panthers took another embarrassing loss in conference play, this time on their home court. Syracuse, for the second time this season, shut down Pitt’s leading scorers en route to a dominant 69-58 win in front of Pitt’s home crowd.
Despite a strong 16-point second half showing from freshman guard Jaland Lowe, Pitt could not dig itself out of the massive hole that it built up in the first frame, eventually falling to Syracuse for the second time this season.
Pitt started the game with a 4-for-8 shooting mark in the first four minutes, headlined by two early buckets from Blake Hinson. His second, set up by a Lowe drive-and-kick, was a three pointer that tied the game at seven. After a few more minutes passed, Pitt’s Ishmael Leggett came in off the bench and delivered five quick points, hitting a crafty layup and a wide-open three.
Both teams continued to trade buckets over the next stretch, as Leggett hit another open three to start three for three from the field. Pitt led 20-19 with ten minutes to go, but the Panthers then went on a brutal scoreless streak while Syracuse piled on.
The Orange ended the first half on a 23-6 run, spanning the final 9:54 of the half. Pitt’s only field goals in that span were two Will Jeffress layups. At the half, Syracuse had built up a 37-26 lead behind ten points from Chris Bell, seven from Judah Mintz, and six from Quadir Copeland.
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(youtube; video; Inside the Panthers)
Pitt Panthers head coach Jeff Capel vowed to coach better and get his team into a better spot after a fifth loss in six games during ACC play at the hands of the Syracuse Orange.
WATCH: Jeff Capel, Jaland Lowe Talk Following 69-58 Loss to Syracuse (pittsburghsportsnow; video; Bechtold)
On a 14-degree night in Pittsburgh outside the Petersen Events Center, the action inside the building by the Pitt Panthers was nearly as cold. Pitt dropped its second game of the season to Syracuse in a deflating 69-58 home loss. Things could have been much worse if it wasn’t for Jaland Lowe. The freshman guard carried the Panther offense.
Pitt shot 33% (10-30) from the floor in the field half and 28.6% (4-14) from three in a pedestrian first half. Pitt only scored 26 points in the first 20 minutes that saw Blake Hinson and Bub Carrington shot 2-14 overall and 1-9 from three. Carrington did not score in the first half on five shot attempts in 19 minutes. The Panthers didn’t fair much better in the second half, shooting 13 for 35 from the field and just 1 for 12 from three.
Hear from Pitt’s Jeff Capel and Jaland Lowe, as well as Syracuse’s Adrian Autry, following the game.
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Keeping Up With The 315 1-16-24 (ESPN; radio; The 315)
Brian begins the show recapping another strong recruiting weekend for Fran Brown and Syracuse football. Then, a caller chimes in with his thoughts on how the team has played compared to preseason expectations. That leads Brian into going through the remaining schedule and trying to figure out how many wins SU needs to make the tourney.
Class of ’25 recruits Kiyan Anthony, Nigel James postpone visit to Syracuse (PS; $; Waters)
Kiyan Anthony, a top recruit in the 2025 class, said he has to cancel a visit to the Syracuse University campus that was scheduled for this weekend.
In a text message conversation with Syracuse.com, Anthony, the son of SU legend Carmelo Anthony, said a conflict with his high school team’s basketball practice would force him to cancel an unofficial visit to Syracuse this weekend.
Anthony and Nigel James, teammates at Long Island Lutheran High School, were both planning to visit Syracuse this weekend as the Orange hosts Miami on Saturday afternoon.
Syracuse is recruiting both Anthony and James intently. Like Anthony, James is a highly-rated prospect in the ‘25 recruiting class.
Anthony, a 6-foot-5 shooting guard, is rated as the No. 39 prospect in the ‘25 class by 247Sports.com. James, a 6-foot point guard, is ranked 99th in the class.
In his text, Anthony said he and James were hoping to find another date to come to Syracuse to see the Orange play at the JMA Wireless Dome.
Anthony took an official visit to Syracuse last fall. He is also considering Indiana, Florida State and Maryland along with several other schools.
Sadiq White, a 6-foot-8 forward at Myers Park High School in Charlotte, N.C., is still expected take an official visit to Syracuse this weekend. White is rated No. 32 in the ‘25 class by 247Sports.com.
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ACC Roundup - Georgia Tech Pulls A Stunner (DBR; King)
In Tuesday night’s ACC Action, Syracuse beat Pitt again, 69-58, Wake Forest fell at NC State 83-76 and Georgia Tech pulled off a double overtime upset of Clemson 93-90.
If you watched Georgia Tech at Duke on Saturday, you saw the Yellow Jackets buckle at the end.
That absolutely didn’t happen in Littlejohn Coliseum.
Georgia Tech never led in the second half but they never gave up either.
Clemson was up 68-59 with 1:43 to go. You’d think that would be enough but, as it turned out, it wasn’t. Not at all.
Kyle Sturdivant made three free throws and then Kowacie Reeves made a three. Georgia Tech fouled Joe Girard with :22 left and one of the best ACC free throw shooters of all time put Clemson up 70-65 with :22 left.
Then Naithan George hit a three with :12 left to cut the lead to two. Chase Hunter split his free throws to tie the game at 71-71.
George was a hero throughout. He made threes, he made smart passes, and he was a superb leader for the Yellow Jackets. It’s only one game and you can’t make too much of it, but for that one game, he fit squarely into Tech’s tradition of brilliant guard play.
The Yellow Jackets have been a mediocre three point shooting team for much of the year but they’ve been terrific in the last two games. At Duke they hit 11-20 and at Clemson they shot 15-35. In the last two games, then, they shot 26-55 and if you shoot like that, you’re going to cause problems.
Clemson, by the way, shot just 3-21 from deep. They almost overcame it with offensive rebounding, pulling down 22 on that end, which is superb. Lefty Driesell just swooned.
It’s too early to know what to make of it, but it sure looks like this team is taking a major leap forward. They were incredibly impressive Tuesday night, not least of all because star freshman big man Baye Ndongo fouled out near the end of the first overtime.
PJ Hall put on a show for the Tigers, hitting a career high 31 points and grabbing 17 rebounds. And Ian Scheiffelin continues his dramatic improvement, putting up 20 points and pulling down 15 rebounds. He also dealt with a cramp that slowed him down a lot late.
A few years ago, Coach K called Hall the most improved player on the planet. When you look at Schieffelin, he looks too pudgy to do what he’s doing, but now you’d have to apply the same thing to him - his improvement is phenomenal. We’ll say it again: Brad Brownell is an absolute genius at finding underappreciated talents and molding them into great players.
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Georgia Tech's Wild Comeback In Clemson (youtube; video; ACC DN)
The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets were down by nine points with 1:43 left in the game and managed to force overtime in Clemson. Relive that final 1:43 and watch how the Yellow Jackets managed to pull off that incredible comeback.
'We ain't going to get pushed a around' - Keatts didn't like the technical's but liked the way his guys fought :: WRALSportsFan.com (wralsportsfan.com; video)
Kevin Keatts said they wanted to send a message to everyone that they are going to fight. The Pack proved that with an 83-76 win vs. Wake Forest improving to 5-1 in ACC play Reporter: Kacy Hintz
Buddy Boeheim erupts for career high in G-League game (PS; $; Waters)
Former Syracuse basketball player Buddy Boeheim set new career-highs for both points and 3-pointers made in a G-League game between the Motor City Cruise and the College Park Skyhawks on Monday night.
Boeheim, who is in his second year with the Motor City Cruise, scored 35 points on 13-for-23 field goal shooting. He connected on nine of his 15 attempts from 3-point range. Boeheim’s career night wasn’t enough, though, as Motor City lost 114-101 to the Skyhawks.
Boeheim is averaging 9.4 points in eight games with the Motor City Cruise this season after putting up 12.1 points per game in 18 games last season. He is making 45.5% of his 3-point attempts this year.
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Other
Illuminating Serenity, an IPA made by Fidens Brewing Company in Albany, N.Y., was named of the the 11 best beers a Bloomberg expert drank from around the world in 2023. Photo courtesy of Fidens BrewingPhoto courtesy of Fidens Brewing
Expert list of the world’s best beers includes Upstate NY brew (PS; House)
Of the 879 drafts a beer expert sipped around the world last year, one of his favorites was brewed in Upstate New York.
Fidens Brewing Company’s Illuminating Serenity was named one of the 11 best beers of 2023 by Bloomberg. The double New England IPA is brewed in Albany, where fans regularly line up for Fidens’ weekly can releases.
But although Illuminating Serenity is made in the Empire State, Bloomberg’s expert first tasted the brew nearly 5,000 miles away in Europe.
Tony Rehagen, the Bloomberg expert, was on a mission to delve into the craft beer scenes in Greece, Peru and Italy when he discovered Fidens’ draft. He found a can of the brewery’s Illuminating Serenity inside Tales of Ales, a shop near Varvakios Central Municipal Market, and wrote he excitedly bought the 16-ounce brew before noting the $22 price tag.
“I took it back to the Airbnb, climbed to the rooftop terrace and drank it while my wife, brother and I looked up at the Acropolis, lit against the Greek sunset,” Rehagen wrote. “I’d say this was an experience worth every cent.”
Fidens’ beer was the only New York-brewed beer on Bloomberg’s list, which includes beers hailing from California to Germany.
Fidens Brewing Company is at 897 Broadway in Albany. The brewery’s weekly can releases are announced on Tuesdays.
CNY Pizza Tour, stop #2: My big, fat Greek pizza from Kosta’s in East Syracuse (PS; $; Miller)
Going to the doctor is usually a not-so-pleasant experience. That is, unless you’re seeing Kosta Kousmanidis, the aptly-named Doctor of Hunger in East Syracuse. In a matter of minutes, this gastronomist will cure hunger with a life-injecting gyro or a dozen crispy wings.
Today’s prescription, though, is pizza. Kosta’s Pizza House has been at the corner of East Manlius Street and McCool Avenue for 37 years. Dining here is like dinner theater, just at lunchtime. See, Kosta talks. He talks a lot. In fact, he never stopped talking from the second I walked in at 11:30 last Thursday until I paid the bill and walked out an hour later.
“I’m living the dreams, Charlie. Living the dreams,” he said. “And I’m going to make you a pizza that is going to give you happy dreams. It’s the best pizza in the world. It’s the best, I tell you.”
Kosta has this talent of building a fetching pizza while looking the customer in the eye and talking the whole time. It takes him no more than four minutes to build a pizza and slide it into the oven. He will drop an order of wings into the fryer, build one of his Kosta Delight sandwiches (roast beef, turkey, ham and mozzarella cheese layered onto a sub roll) and offer you a tray of his homemade chips while seamlessly going from one sentence to the next.
Hey, Kosta! Let’s eat...
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