sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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Four Prunes Day is a day to eat prunes, and is named as such because it is believed that someone looking for digestive regularity will get it by eating between four and nine prunes in a sitting. Prunes, which are dried plums, have gotten a bad rap over the years because of their association with constipation relief. Because of this, plum growers worked to change the stigma, and were allowed to rebrand them by labeling them as "dried plums" starting in 2001. Most prunes are grown in California—about 200,000 a year—most of which are a variety similar to a kind grown in Agen, France. These types of prunes came from France to the United States in 1856. Prunes were eaten by the Greeks and Romans, and were planted all around the Mediterranean Sea after coming from China. Prunes are a good source of fiber and a rich source of Vitamin K. They also are a good source of potassium and magnesium, and contain antioxidants. Only about three quarters of a pound of prunes are eaten each year per capita in the United States. Maybe Four Prunes Day needs to be celebrated a little more often!
SU News
Syracuse basketball: Jim Boeheim, Jesse Edwards and Joseph Girard speak on new Orange team (247sports.com; Marsdale)
Syracuse basketball and head coach Jim Boeheim look to improve on a 2021-22 season in which they finished under .500 at 16-17. That task gets even harder when you take into account the loss of their leading two scorers in Buddy Boeheim and Cole Swider as well as the fourth-leading scorer in Jimmy Boeheim. Guard Joseph Girard and center Jesse Edwards will be called upon to pick up the slack in both production and leadership in 2022-23.
Syracuse has missed the NCAA Tournament in two of the last three seasons. The 77-year-old Boeheim enters his 47th season on the job, and hopes to flip that script. The Orange made the Sweet 16 in their last appearance in 2020-21.
Despite the loss of some leading scorers, Boeheim and company scored a strong recruiting class. That included two top-70 players nationally in guard Judah Mintz and forward Chris Bunch.
Boeheim, Girard and Edwards certainly hope things can be better this year, and they discussed it all Wednesday at ACC Media Day in Charlotte, N.C..
BOEHEIM ON EXPANDING THE NCAA TOURNAMENT:
"Well, I had that idea 30 years ago. I've been knocked down every year I ever brought it up. I stopped bringing it up. Everybody thought I was an idiot. It took 30 years, but I guess I'm maybe right now, huh? The main thing is there's so many more good teams now that it should be an easy move, an easy decision. I like the argument that people say, well, it will dilute the tournament. No, it won't dilute the tournament. It'll get some more teams in and the bad teams will be out after one round....
5 takeaways from 2022 Syracuse Basketball Media Day - The Juice Online (the juice; Gustin)
Syracuse held its annual media day on Friday, less than a month from the first preseason games of the 2022-23 season. Here are five takeaways from the media event.
Boeheim rips the Big 10.
The most talked about quote from Jim Boeheim was his distaste for the Big 10. Boeheim noted that the Big 10 got nine bids last year but none of those teams made the Final Four. Meanwhile, the ACC only received five bids, but two of those teams (North Carolina and Duke) made championship weekend. “They sucked in the tournament. To me, that’s what they did. All of their wins were in their league.” That’s probably going to add some extra juice to the 2022 ACC/Big Ten Challenge. For reference, Syracuse plays at Illinois this year on Nov. 29.
The defense should be better.
What was the more glaring issue during Jim Boeheim’s first losing season? It wasn’t offense. The Orange finished 15th in the country in that category according to KenPom. No, the issue was on the opposite end of the floor. “Our defense wasn’t good enough last year,” Boeheim said. “We were not able to get stops” He expects that to change this year with a more athletic team. While SU may not score as easily this year, Benny Williams, Judah Mintz and Chris Bunch (or Justin Taylor) will all be athletic upgrades over their predecessors Buddy Boeheim, Cole Swider and Jimmy Boeheim.
Syracuse will play man-to-man. No. Really.
Boeheim reiterated that Syracuse will come out of its traditional 2-3 zone and play some man-to-man, something he hasn’t done since a 2009 preseason exhibition loss to Le Moyne. “It’s new to play man to man. We haven’t done that in a while.” But Boeheim said it shouldn’t be much of a transition, especially for the younger players who all played man-to-man in high school.
Mintz, the freshman phenom.
Mintz comes in as Syracuse’s highest guard recruit (33rd in the ESPN 100 rankings) since Tyus Battle. The 6-4, 175-pound guard is likely to be the team’s starting point guard come opening night, and drew high praise from Boeheim. “He’s very athletic. He understands the game.” Boeheim added that he expects all of his freshmen to contribute in one form or another. Still, no freshman is likely to play as much as Mintz, who has drawn rave reviews from his ability in practice.
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College basketball: Renewed energy greets Syracuse men's squad for 2022-23 season (yahoo.com; St Croix)
There was a fresh energy surrounding the Syracuse University basketball media day, both from men's coach Jim Boeheim entering his 47th season and fellow alum Felisha Legette-Jack approaching her debut campaign guiding the women's team.
Both coaches and their respective players met formally with media for the first time ahead of the upcoming season on Friday at the Carmelo K. Anthony Basketball Center.
The number of new faces and changing identities within each program dominated discussion before the teams left for Orange Tipoff with scrimmages and fan events afterward at the JMA Wireless Dome.
Boeheim spoke at length regarding his six-player freshman class, plans to mix man-to-man defense back into his game plans, and utilizing a deep bench among the major changes creating intrigue for the upcoming year.
The Orange will begin with an exhibition game against NCAA Division II Indiana (Pa.)University on Oct. 25 in the Dome and open the regular season, hosting Lehigh on Nov. 7.
The expanded rookie class are all ready to contribute, according to Boeheim, for a unit he expects to be more reliant on slashing, athleticism, and depth than the outside shooting squads of recent years.
Judah Mintz is expected to start at point guard while fellow freshmen Chris Bunch and Justin Taylor appear to be in line for significant forward minutes. Quadir Copeland, Maliq Brown, and Peter Carey are also vying to make immediate contributions.
"There's a new energy around the program, the past few years, we haven't had some of the athletes that we have this year," said returning senior Joe Girard III, expected to shift from point to shooting guard in the first unit.
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Syracuse basketball roster ‘best team we’ve had in a while,’ Boeheim says (itlh; Adler)
Syracuse basketball, in a few weeks, will embark on a new season, and it will be the 47th campaign for Jim Boeheim as the Orange’s head coach.
Boeheim endured his first losing stanza ever as the team’s boss in 2021-22, when the ‘Cuse went 16-17 overall, lost a bunch of close games, and really struggled on the defensive end.
Fast-forward to the present, and Boeheim is super optimistic that the 2022-23 version of the Orange will make significant improvements over last season’s line-up, which included his sons, shooting guard Buddy Boeheim and forward Jimmy Boeheim.
The Boeheim brothers, and others, have departed the Hill. The 2022-23 roster is significantly revamped, and it includes three seniors and a ton of underclassmen.
“We’re going to be in the NCAA Tournament,” Boeheim recently told college basketball insider Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports. “This is the best team we’ve had in a while.”
Syracuse basketball head coach Jim Boeheim likes his Orange line-up for 2022-23.
Now, I love Jim Boeheim, and I respect his candidness, whether he’s saying positive stuff or negative stuff. Correct me if I’m wrong, but hasn’t Boeheim said similar things about other recent rosters?Plus, after experiencing his first losing term in 46 years as the squad’s head coach, shouldn’t we hope – and expect – Boeheim to dish out some pre-season hype for his 2022-23 group?
Since joining the Atlantic Coast Conference from the Big East Conference in 2013-14, the ‘Cuse has not proven all that stellar in the vast majority of its regular seasons.
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Syracuse Basketball: 4-star freshmen are vying for starting forward spot (itlh; Adler)
Unless some weirdness transpires, the bulk of the starting rotation for Syracuse basketball to commence the 2022-23 season is likely already known.
I’m basing my thoughts here on comments made by head coach Jim Boeheim in various interviews, as well as additional commentary from national experts on the Orange ahead of the upcoming campaign.
Two returning starters from the 2021-22 stanza, when the ‘Cuse finished at a disappointing 16-17 overall, are seniors Joe Girard III and Jesse Edwards.
Girard has played a lot of point guard in his Orange tenure to date, but Boeheim has said more than once lately that Girard will start at shooting guard in 2022-23.
A lot of the pieces to the starting rotation appear relatively set for Syracuse basketball.
Freshman Judah Mintz, a 2022 four-star prospect, is likely to start at point guard. Edwards was in contention for the Atlantic Coast Conference’s most improved player award a season ago before getting injured in February.
He seems to be fully healthy, and Edwards will start at center. My assumption is that at one forward spot, sophomore Benny Williams will get the starting nod.
That leaves us the second forward spot. College basketball insider Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports recently said via social media that he expects 2022 four-star player Chris Bunch to be in the starting line-up when the Orange begins its 2022-23 campaign in early November.
The 6-foot-7 Bunch, out of the Wasatch Academy in Mount Pleasant, Utah, was a top-100 national prospect in the 2022 cycle, according to several recruiting services.
Per a tweet and article from Rothstein, Boeheim expects either Bunch or 6-foot-6 freshman Justin Taylor will start at small forward, with the other guy likely to be the team’s sixth man and first reserve off of the bench.
The four-star Taylor, out of the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., was also deemed a top-100 player in the 2022 class by some recruiting services, although the majority of primary recruiting Web sites had him in the top 150.
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Syracuse basketball: Early impressions from Orange Tipoff event (TNIAAJ; Szuba)
Following its annual local media event, the Syracuse Orange men’s basketball team gave fans the first look at the 2022-23 team from inside the JMA Dome. Last week, the team put on a similar event in Rochester as part of Monroe Madness.
Earlier in the day, Jim Boeheim spoke to reporters from the Carmelo K. Anthony Center with the usual witty remarks that many have grown accustomed to over the years. Following that event, both the men’s and women’s basketball teams filed into the dome around 6 p.m. for the 7 p.m. event tip. Teams and players were introduced in front of a sparse crowd spread out only among the lower level of the dome.
Both head coaches of the women’s and men’s teams were interviewed. Felisha Legette-Jack first stating, “I promise you one thing. We’re going to give you everything we have.”
Boeheim first thanked the fans for coming out and encouraged them to come back for the Syracuse football game against N.C. State, saying, “Let’s get the sixth win tomorrow.”
Both teams competed in a three-point contest and a dunk competition. Chris Bunch edged out Justin Taylor in the three-point contest, making 12 out of 15 threes, including a perfect second rack. Taylor made 11. Joe Girard made ten and Symir Torrence made four.
Benny Williams, noticeably more muscular than a season ago, displayed his bounce and won the dunk contest.
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Jim Boeheim Ridiculed The Big Ten On Syracuse’s Media Day (DBR; King)
Love him or hate him, and we’ve done both, Jim Boeheim never cares what anyone thinks and says exactly what he pleases. He can be incredibly blunt.
Which is exactly what happened on Syracuse’s Media Day Friday when he said this: “At the end of the day, you play for the [NCAA] tournament You can say what you want about the Big Ten. They sucked in the tournament. To me, that’s what they did. All of their wins were in their league. If you can’t play in the [NCAA] tournament, then you’re not good.”
Honestly, how can you argue with that?
The last time the Big Ten won a national championship was in 2000. There are some very good coaches and players in the Big Ten, but what was the last team to really capture the public imagination? The Fab Five?
The Big 12 is on a two-year championship run. The ACC won in 2010, 2015, 2017 and 2019. And fundamentally, Boeheim is right. What else do you base success on in this era?
You know, the Big 12 is one thing, but when the SEC basically passes you, you’ve got real problems.
The Big Ten needs...something. Maybe Juwan Howard can give it a jolt at Michigan but we’re not sure who else can. This conference is in dire need of some charisma.
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MBB: KenPom Preseason Top 50 (RX; HM)
MBB: KenPom Preseason Top 50
College Basketball Season is almost upon us. Here's a look at the preseason KenPom computer rankings:
COMMENTS:
2 ACC teams in the top 10 (#5 UVA, #9 UNC)3 ACC teams in the top 20 (#15 Duke)
4 ACC teams in the top 30 (#21 VT - ok, 4 in the top 21)
6 ACC teams in the top 50 (#42 Miami, #43 Notre Dame)
COMPARISON (top 50):
10 SEC teams9 Big Ten teams
7 Big XII teams
6 ACC teams
3 Pac-12 teams
This is not where the ACC expected to be at this point, but I think it speaks to the real impact of TV revenue. You can only spend so much on football before you start to get diminishing returns, but the extra money still benefits the basketball side, I think. We'll see if this is a long-term trend or simply the result of the coaching carousel.
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Other
Cardiac surgeon Dr. G. Randall Green outside St. Joseph's Hospital in Syracuse.
Upstate University Hospital’s star heart surgeon quits after cardiac program expansion stalls (PS; $; Mulder)
SUNY Upstate University Hospital’s top heart surgeon has quit because he says Upstate officials reneged on promises to beef up its cardiac surgery program.
Dr. G. Randall Green, Upstate’s chief of cardiac surgery, left Sept. 21 and plans to return to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Syracuse. He worked at St. Joe’s for 12 years before Upstate hired him in 2017.
Green, 54, ranks among the state’s top cardiac surgeons with significantly lower-than-average patient mortality rates. Since joining Upstate, Green has also consistently been among the state’s highest-paid employees.
Green said he resigned because Upstate didn’t keep its promise to launch a heart institute to recruit and train more cardiac surgeons, increase surgery volume, cardiology services and conduct research.
When Green was hired, he was named co-director of the proposed institute. Green said creating the heart institute was the reason he took the job at Upstate.
Upstate did not give him the resources or authority to make it happen, Green said.
“After five years I was told that the Upstate Heart Institute was to be put ‘on hold,’ ” he said.
That, plus incessant on-call shifts and Upstate’s reliance on temporary cardiac surgeons all convinced Green it was time to part ways with the public hospital, he said.
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