sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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Taking place on the last Thursday before Ash Wednesday, which begins Lent, Fat Thursday is a Christian feast that is primarily celebrated in European countries. It is similar to Fat Tuesday, which is celebrated the following week, but in many European countries, it is the more important holiday of the two. It also is associated with Carnival. As much fasting is done during Lent, Fat Thursday is a day for getting together and eating sweets and other foods that are eschewed during that season. Commonly eaten foods include pączki, berliners, and angel wings.
The holiday is given different names in various European countries, where distinct foods are associated with the day. The day appears to be most widely celebrated in Poland, where it is known as Tłusty Czwartek. Pastries and doughnuts from bakeries are eaten, especially pączki. The tradition of eating doughnuts on the day began in the seventeenth century. In parts of Germany, it is known as Weiberfastnacht. People wear costumes, and celebrations in the streets and in pubs begin at 11:11 a.m. It is known as the "women's carnival" and there is a tradition of women "taking over" town halls. In some parts of Germany, the holiday is also known as Fetter Donnerstag.
SU News
Dave Pasch on Bill Walton and more in this week's Inside Syracuse Basketball podcast (PS; $; podcast; Waters)
Imagine calling a college basketball game on national television only to have your on-air partner take off his headset and go to the bathroom during the game.
That is just one of many stories that Dave Pasch, the ESPN announcer and Syracuse University alum, shared during his visit on the Inside Syracuse Basketball podcast.
Pasch, who graduated from SU in 1994, was just 26 years old when he became the radio Voice of the Syracuse Orange in 1999. He stayed in that role through the 2001-02 season.
He has been with ESPN since 2002. He is also the play-by-play announcer for the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals.
In addition to Walton, Pasch also talks about the guidance he received from Mike Tirico and Sean McDonough, his relationships with SU coaches Jim Boeheim and Paul Pasqualoni and his other broadcast partners, including Jay Bilas and Dick Vitale.
For Quincy Guerrier to become a complete player, he had to fix his shot (DO; Graham)
The Snapchat video from Quincy Guerrier had ended, but Rajeev Toutoux needed to replay it. He thought he saw something different about Guerrier’s shot, something subtle that Syracuse’s sophomore forward and his former roommate at Thetford Academy didn’t have the previous season.
For a second time, he watched Guerrier balance his phone in front of his laptop screen, filming a clip from practice earlier that day. Now Toutoux knew he saw it: the softer roll off the fingertips, the elbow that bent closer to the 90-degree angle it needed to have, the shot that, altogether, looked smooth. It was July, midway through Guerrier’s first offseason in Syracuse, and the shooting adjustments were starting to come together.
He worked on that shot, and has continued to, with assistant coach Adrian Autry, using additional free throws after practice to sharpen his form and release. Then, the pair turned their attention to helping Guerrier create his own shot off the dribble, floaters and his 3-pointer. They needed to refine Guerrier’s all-around shooting abilities, transferring what he did at Thetford and in SU practices into game situations.
It helped Guerrier blossom into more of the player, the pure scorer, that he was recruited to be. He’s gone from the Orange’s sixth man last year to their focal point on offense this year. From 6.9 points and 5.3 rebounds per game to 15.7 and 9.1. From an NBA Draft afterthought to potential second-round pick, if he decides to declare after the season. For those closest to Guerrier — including head coach Jim Boeheim — Guerrier has always been this type of all-around player. It just took time for everything to surface at Syracuse (11-6, 5-5 Atlantic Coast).
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Beat writers predict blowout win for Syracuse over Boston College (DO; Staff)
Syracuse kept its NCAA Tournament bubble bid alive with a win over NC State on Tuesday night, and next faces Boston College (3-12, 1-8 Atlantic Coast) — a program that has faltered for nearly the entire season. Alan Griffin led the Orange with 22 points in “his best game,” SU head coach Jim Boeheim said, while Kadary Richmond added a balanced stat line of eight points, four assists and three steals in 25 minutes.
In the win, SU (11-6, 5-5) made more than 45% of its 3-pointers (47.4%) for the first time since it played BC on Dec. 12 and hit a program-record 16 3s. The Eagles have gone 2-7 since that game, and had five games canceled before returning from a COVID-19 pause with a loss to the Wolfpack and a four-point home loss against Wake Forest.
Here’s what our three beat writers think will happen when the Orange face BC on Saturday.
Andrew Crane (11-6)
She Comeees from Boston
Syracuse 81, Boston College 65
Both of these have come a long way since the first time they played on Dec. 12. Syracuse isn’t the team that made 16 3-pointers or topped 100 points. Boston College isn’t the team that only lost to then-No. 3 Villanova by nine points and took Minnesota to overtime. The reality is that, as bad as the Orange have been throughout the season — with poor defensive efficiency, offensive rebounding and 3-point shooting — BC is far worse.
Winning a game like this won’t instantly put SU back in into NCAA Tournament mock brackets, but a loss would certainly eliminate it barring a run in Greensboro, North Carolina. If the Orange are actually a bubble team, they’ll win this game comfortably — without any questions or doubts along the way — and cruise into a resume-boosting opportunity against Louisville on Feb. 17. Look for Griffin, who scored 22 points in the first meeting, to continue the progress he made on Tuesday and lead Syracuse’s offense.
Anthony Dabbundo (13-4)
No excuses
Syracuse 83, Boston College 71
It won’t be as easy as last time, when SU opened ACC play with its largest win since joining the conference and 101 points. But Boston College is really bad defensively, cannot guard the interior and has dealt with COVID-19 issues recently. Syracuse’s best offensive showing came against the Eagles, when they made open shots and sliced through the BC defense with passing and moving.
The Eagles could keep this close if they make a lot of 3s, but they also present very little in terms of rebounding to trouble the Orange, and this should be a routine win. There is no excuse for Syracuse to lose this game, or even have it be particularly close late.
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Alan Griffin's big night at NC State prompted in part by Jim Boeheim: 'He was on my ass' (247sports.com; Bailey)
Forty-five minutes after wrapping up Syracuse basketball's best road win of the season, Alan Griffin flashed the same sheepish smile time and time again during his virtual press conference. The junior forward had just turned in what head coach Jim Boeheim called his best game of the season, securing a key victory for the Orange's NCAA Tournament resume.
Griffin posted 22 points on 9-of-17 shooting at North Carolina State, making 4-of-7 three-pointers while pitching in four boards, three steals, two assists and a block. He played all 40 minutes for the first time this season, contributing consistently throughout SU's 77-68 victory over the Wolfpack.
“As the season has gone on," Griffin said, "I’m getting more comfortable knowing where I have to be, learning the defense, and, as of today, it showed that I have it down.”
Griffin's offensive prowess has never been in question. He's the most proficient outside shooter in SU's regular rotation this year -- making 36.4 percent of his attempts compared to Joe Girard's 33.3 percent and Buddy Boeheim's 31.0. His in-between game has resulted in him shooting 51.8 percent inside the arc and establishing himself as arguably the team's most capable player of generating a quality look off the dribble.
But against NC State, Griffin turned in one of his best defensive performances of the year as well. In addition to forcing three of NC State's 20 turnovers, he made timely rotations, particularly in the second half, and helped an undersized frontcourt clear the glass. SU out-boarded NCSU 22-12 after the break, limiting the second-chance opportunities that have plagued the program often in ACC play.
“On the defensive end, we were connecting, and those three steals were Coach being on my behind, on my ass," Griffin said. "He was on my ass about rotating over, and it showed out there today."
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ACC Roundup - Syracuse Wins In Raleigh, Armando Bacot Receives A Death Threat (DBR; King)
In Tuesday night’s ACC Action, Syracuse came south and knocked off NC State in Raleigh, 77-68 behind strong games from Alan Griffin, Buddy Boeheim and Quincy Guerrier.
This was a one-point game at the hall but Syracuse left State in the dust in the second as the Pack seemed to fade sharply.
After shooting 52.4 percent in the first, State managed just 37.5 in the second. The Wuffies also had 20 turnovers in this one, which perhaps shows up in the shot totals: Syracuse had 60 attempts to State’s 45. Nearly half of State’s made shots were threes too (eight).
It’s just one more example of an erratic season. There’s far too many disruptions for most teams to build any momentum.
Of course some of it is self-inflicted, like it is at UNC where several managers and players partied in violation of ACC protocols.
The Daily Tar Heel published the video and the league decided that the Miami-UNC game Tuesday night must be postponed, leading to another interesting question: should UNC pay for Miami’s travel expenses?
The players involved apologized and Ol’ Roy Williams accepted it, saying they had learned an important lesson.
We’ve been making fun of Kentucky fans during this bizarre season for how they’ve dealt with a disastrous season but UNC fans, or one anyway presumably, threatened Armando Bacot’s life on Twitter, which understandably didn’t amuse his mother, who posted this on Twitter:
“It brings me great concern that there have been threats toward my son, Armando Bacot’s life, by individuals; one, who don’t know him nor our family personally and two, did not know the whole story and truth.”
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Louisville at Virginia Tech Men’s Basketball Game Postponed theacc.com)
The Atlantic Coast Conference announced today that the Louisville at Virginia Tech men’s basketball game scheduled for Saturday, February 13 has been postponed and rescheduled for Wednesday, March 3. Time and network designation will be determined at a later date.
The postponement follows the continuing quarantining and contact tracing within the Louisville men’s basketball program. The team is adhering to the outlined protocols within the ACC Medical Advisory Group report, which is available on theACC.com (full report).
The full 2020-21 ACC men’s basketball schedule can be found on theACC.com.
ACC Basketball Under-The-Radar Players (msn.com; video)
Take a look at six players who are having great under-the-radar seasons in the ACC.
Other
Syracuse’s Columbus statue group escalates political war against Ben Walsh - syracuse.com
The annual Columbus Day wreath laying ceremony in Syracuse N.Y. Oct 12, 2020. Mark Nicotra and Nick Pirro hand off a weath to be placed at the foot of the Christopher Columbus statue. The city has announced that the statue will be removed. Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com
Syracuse’s Columbus statue group escalates political war against Ben Walsh (PS; $; Baker)
Syracuse’s Columbus statue group escalates political war against Ben Walsh - syracuse.com
A group of politically powerful Columbus statue supporters have ramped up their fight against Mayor Ben Walsh, who last year announced he will remove the Christopher Columbus statue from downtown Syracuse.
The Columbus Monument Corporation sent letters to leaders of every permanent political party in Syracuse in recent weeks. Those letters outlined the group’s disgust with Walsh’s decision and came with a message:
“We want you to know that this is a very important issue to our group of supporters, and we plan to fight Walsh’s plan,” the letter said. “We are well organized, well-funded, and highly motivated.”
The letters are the latest escalation in the group’s fight against Walsh. In recent months, they’ve blasted the mayor frequently on social media, organized letter writing efforts to the newspaper and dedicated a page on their website to Walsh.
Greg Loh, a spokesman for Walsh, said the group’s ongoing fight is only serving to divide the community.
“It’s disappointing the Corporation continues to ignore the community concerns that have existed about the statue for decades,” Loh said. “Instead of using their energy and resources to help bring people together to honor our Italian American heritage in a way that respects all cultures, as is happening in Buffalo, they are instead personalizing the issue and further dividing the community.”
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