sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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Welcome to Robert Burns Day!
Burns suppers celebrate the life and writings of Scottish poet Robert Burns. Also known by other names, including Burns Night, Burns suppers are usually held on the anniversary of Burns' birth, but may be on other days. They are celebrated all around the world. The first supper was held on the fifth anniversary of Burns' death, on July 21, 1801. It was organized by his friends and held at Burns Cottage. The longest-lasting Burns Club, started in Greenock in 1801, held their first Burns Supper on January 29, 1802, on the date they thought was Burns' birthday. But when records found in the parish town of Ayr the following year showed his birthday was actually January 25th, the suppers were changed to that date, and have been held on it since.
The Scottish Parliament welcomes the yearly celebration of Robert Burns. They consider him to be one of the world's great poets, believe that his work has influenced thinkers across the world, and acknowledge that his first published collection—Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect, or the Kilmarnock Edition—helped popularize and champion the Scottish language. They believe "that the celebration of Burns Night is an opportunity to raise awareness of the cultural significance of Scots and its status as one of the indigenous languages of Scotland" and "in the importance of the writing down of the Scots language to ensure its continuation through written documentation, as well as oral tradition."
SU News
Weitsman says he’s paying $1 million to SU players, and that’s just a start (PS; $; Carlson)
Adam Weitsman, Syracuse University’s most high-profile athletics booster, says he will put more than $1 million in the pockets of SU athletes and is offering at least $1 million more to top basketball recruits.
The payments could help Syracuse hold onto its best players and attract some of the country’s top talent as the school tries to catch up in a new ballgame in which players are permitted to be compensated for use of their name, image and likeness (NIL).
“Even though I don’t have a role with the basketball team, I think, within the next five years, Syracuse will be playing in the national championship,” Weitsman said. “Because if I’m going to do something, I’m going all in.”
Weitsman, a scrap metal magnate who sits next to men’s basketball coach Jim Boeheim during home games, has livened up the JMA Dome by bringing guests like Tom Brady, Jimmy Fallon, Allen Iverson and Josh Allen.
Plunging into a loosely regulated NIL space could make him a force in Syracuse’s recruiting efforts and help rescue struggling programs that have seen players and recruits bail for bigger brands and more NIL opportunities.
Weitsman said he has offered a seven-figure, multiyear contract to five-star prospect Boogie Fland, ranked by 247Sports as the No. 11 basketball recruit in the country in the Class of 2024.
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SU had another top ACC team on the ropes. Then, a blur of whistles and consequential plays (P; $; Ditota)
It was right there.
For the second time in eight days, Syracuse had a top ACC team teetering on the ropes.
Last week, Miami escaped with an 82-78 win.
On Tuesday, North Carolina made it out of the JMA Wireless Dome with a 72-68 victory.
“We did everything we could tonight to win this game,” SU coach Jim Boeheim said. “It got away from us in the last second.”
The last two minutes of Tuesday’s game squeezed every emotion from the Dome crowd. In those two minutes, Orange fans went from euphoric to absolutely still and silent.
SU took a timeout with 2:07 left in the game. The Orange trailed 66-63.
Judah Mintz drove, missed a shot, but Maliq Brown was there to tip it in.
Syracuse trailed 66-65 with 1:52 left.
Then Armando Bacot turned it over.
That mistake led to a Joe Girard 3-point shot off a pass from Mintz. Girard caught the pass, paused, watched his defender sail past him and calmly drained a 3.
There was 1:22 left.
The Orange led 68-66 and the Dome crowd was ear-splittingly loud. People were on their feet, anticipating a win over one of the ACC’s premier programs.
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N. Scott Trimble | strimble@syracuse.com
Syracuse lost to UNC and the ACC officials (Axe recap) (PS; $; Axe)
The Syracuse University men’s basketball team certainly created its own problems that tipped Tuesday night’s game in favor of the North Carolina Tar Heels in a 72-68 loss at the JMA Wireless Dome.
It doesn’t excuse the officiating disaster the Orange also had to contend with.
The ACC crew of Brian O’Connell, Lee Cassell and Roger Ayers called a frustrating, hair-pulling game with too heavy of a tilt toward the Tar Heels.
The three (insert a certain children’s rhyme here) didn’t do much to counter the old wives’ tale of the All Carolina Conference by sending the Tar Heels to the free-throw line 23 times to just three for Syracuse.
Make it make sense: 23-3.
“It’s unusual,” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said as diplomatically as he could when asked about the free-throw gap.
Yes, the Tar Heels get to the free-throw line more than anyone in the ACC, averaging 24.9 free throws per game.
It doesn’t matter.
The officiating crew got too involved in the second half after letting a lot of contact slide, flat-out missed too many calls and couldn’t stay away from their little replay monitor as if they were binging “The Last of Us” during the game.
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Five Takeaways: UNC 72 Syracuse 68 (SI; McAllister)
Syracuse basketball lost a heartbreaker to North Carolina in the Dome Tuesday night 72-68. Here are five takeaways from the loss.
1. Another Missed Opportunity
Syracuse has had multiple golden opportunities for a signature win that could give the Orange momentum to go on a run and get back into the NCAA Tournament conversation. Each time it is has let that opportunity slip through its fingers. Whether it was an overtime loss against St. John's on a neutral court where it controlled most of the game, a close loss to Virginia in which the 23 point hole it dug was too much to overcome or the loss at Miami in which it led for basically the entire game until the final moments. Tuesday night's game was more of that. Syracuse rallied to take a two point lead with 1:23 left after Joe Girard's three pointer. After getting a defensive stop, Judah Mintz's shot rimmed out. Then the Orange failed to cover a cutting Pete Nance along the baseline. Then Syracuse failed to get the rebound on the free throw miss. Then Girard tried to save the ball by tossing it across his own basket which led to a wide open game winning layup for Nance. Girard should know better than to save across his own basket like that, especially as a senior with four years of playing experience. Even with that, Syracuse was down one but Mintz was out of control trying to score a go ahead bucket in the last 15 seconds. Gut wrenching to say the least.
2. Free Throws
Syracuse shot just three free throws all night compared to North Carolina's 23. This despite Syracuse having more points in the paint (38 to 34) than the Tar Heels. That is hard to justify. Judah Mintz has a major gripe as he was fouled multiple times on his drives and mid-range jumpers but only received two free throws. Mintz took 18 shots, only one of which was an outside shot, and had just two attempts at the charity stripe. Caleb Love, who took five of his seven shots beyond the arc, had six free throw attempts, for example. Then you have the mess of how the end of the game was officiated. First, on the rebound on the missed Nance free throw, Mounir Hima had position on Armando Bacot right in front of the basket. Bacot used his forearm to shove Hima out of the way and prevent him from being involved in the rebound. A foul was not called. Mintz was subsequently rightly called for a charge as he was out of control going to the basket. However, it was reviewed and deemed a flagrant one because his elbow contacted RJ Davis. The explanation was that he led with his elbow, which video proves was not the case. The officials reviewed that very video but still made that determination. Mintz was charging towards the hoop and brought his elbow over as part of a normal basketball play trying to get an open look near the basket. That should not have been a flagrant. After UNC made one of two flagrant free throws, it retained possession up two. On the inbounds pass, Caleb Love shoves Mintz to the ground but Mintz is called for the foul. Instead of it being Syracuse ball down two, Love hits two free throws to ice the game. Bad all around. In the first half, North Carolina had two free throws and Syracuse had none as the officials largely let both teams play. Something changed in the second half as the Tar Heels had 21 second half free throws.
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Highlights & Recap: Syracuse Loses Tough One to North Carolina (SI; Staples)
More than 20,000 people bore witness to what ended up being a heartbreaking loss for Syracuse men’s basketball.
With 1:23 left on the clock, Joe Girard hit a three to take a 68-66 lead. And 34 seconds later, the sixth and final lead change of the game would go in North Carolina’s favor.
Pete Nance went one-for-two from the stripe, and put back his own miss to go up 69-68.Judah Mintz got inbounded the ball and took it the length of the court before getting charged for a flagrant foul against RJ Davis. Caleb Love went to the line twice afterwards and the Tar Heels escaped the Orange 72-68.
Love, with 15 points, was one of three Tar Heels to score in double-figures, alongside Armondo Bacot with 18 and Pete Nance’s 21.
The Orange had three in the double-figures, too: Girard with 18, Judah Mintz had 17 and Chriss Bell’s 15.
Before fouling out, Jesse Edwards had seven rebounds and five blocks, and only 8 points.
“He has trouble moving against a stronger guy offensively,” Boeheim said.
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Syracuse Basketball: 4-star big-man target skyrockets in national rankings (itlh; Adler)
Syracuse basketball coaches have offered a wide range of four-star and five-star prospects in the junior class, around 15 players in total. A lot of these Orange recruiting targets are point guards, shooting guards, wings and small forwards.
But another focal point for the ‘Cuse in the 2024 cycle is power forwards/centers. And my hope is the top of the list for Syracuse basketball coaches centers on a fast-rising big man from Philadelphia who is totally exploding in the national rankings for his class lately.
Four-star Thomas Sorber, a 6-foot-9 power forward/center, received a scholarship offer from the Orange around the time of the team’s annual Elite Camp last August.
He is a junior at Archbishop Ryan High School in Philadelphia and runs on the AAU circuit with the Philadelphia-based Team Final in Nike’s EYBL league.
Syracuse basketball faces steep competition for four-star big man Thomas Sorber.
Recently, Sorber has put up numerous monster games for Archbishop Ryan. As far as I can tell, he is a double-double machine.Some of his latest offers are from Villanova, Xavier, Miami, Seton Hall and St. John’s. Sorber’s offer sheet also includes Penn State, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, Maryland, Georgetown, Providence, Mississippi State, Richmond, La Salle, Saint Joseph’s, Bryant, George Mason, Drexel and Albany.
According to media reports and recruiting services, Sorber took an unofficial visit to Penn State last September, and he was on an unofficial visit to the Hill this past August to compete in the Orange’s Elite Camp.
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NCAA Basketball: Jalen Wilson, Drew Timme among 2022-23 NPOY favorites (bustingbrackets.com; Freeman)
The National Player of the Year debate doesn’t feel like much this 2022-23 NCAA Basketball season, since there seems to be a clear top tier. But there are some players whose play has started to warrant some consideration.
After a number of major performances in the past week, the stats for the top players in the country are now as gaudy as ever. Here’s a look at which players are firmly in the running for National Player of the Year.
*Stats are through Jan 23rd
Honorable Mention: Antoine Davis – Detroit Mercy Titans
2022-23 stats: 26.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 3.4 apgWith Jordan Walker of UAB seeing his scoring slip, Davis, now the all-time Horizon League leader in points scored, is No. 1 in NCAA Basketball in scoring. He’s scored 27+ points in each of the past five games, including a season-high 41 points in 33 minutes in a win over Robert Morris, which also included 11/18 from three-point range.
HM: Kris Murray – Iowa Hawkeyes
2022-23 stats: 21.3 ppg and 8.9 rpgBetween missing a few games and Iowa not being in the national picture at the moment, Murray’s stock has slid a bit. But when he’s on the court, he’s been just as good as his brother, Keegan. He’s up to 23.7 ppg in Big Ten play, including a recent 27-point performance in an overtime win over Michigan.
HM: Hunter Tyson – Clemson Tigers
2022-23 stats: 15.7 ppg and 10.1 rpgThe Tigers are in first place in the ACC and are in the NCAA Tournament thanks to a breakout season from the 5th-year senior. Tyson has 10 double-doubles on the year, including the most recent 19-point, 14-rebound performance at Wake Forest. He’s been one of the most improved players in the country and warrants a little bit of national acknowledgment.
HM: Souley Boum – Xavier Musketeers
2022-23 stats: 16.6 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 5.1 apgAs much credit as Coach Sean Miller gets for turning Xavier into a top-10 team, so should the former UTEP guard that leads the team in scoring and passing. Boum had 22 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in a win over Villanova and 26 points and eight assists in a win over Creighton. With UConn and Adama Sanogo (who was in the previous NPOY rankings) falling down, it could be the senior guard that takes advantage.
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Other
“Vindictive” is a new movie filmed in Syracuse by Tyrone “Tizak” Jackson.
Syracuse filmmaker’s new movie to premiere at Regal Destiny USA (PS; Herbert)
A new movie from a Syracuse filmmaker will make its world premiere at Destiny USA’s Regal Cinemas.
“Vindictive,” an urban drama written and directed by Tyrone “Tizak” Jackson, will be shown on the big screen Saturday, Feb. 11, at Regal Destiny USA. The film will begin at 6:30 p.m.
Tickets are on sale for $20 through Eventbrite. Additional fees may apply.
The event will be the first time anyone can see the film before a widespread release on streaming services.
“This movie is about a woman who would do anything to get to that bag, even if it mean turning on her closest friend, but not everything always go as planned,” the event website says.
Jackson, a Fowler High School graduate, is a prolific filmmaker in Syracuse, often wearing multiple hats as a writer, director, producer and actor. Most of his movies are shot in Central New York, but “Vindictive” was filmed in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Jackson pursued a career as a rapper and DJ before launching his own film production company, All Grown Up Entertainment, in 2015. His credits include “No Such Thing as Loyalty,” “No Such Thing As Loyalty 2″ (starring former SU running back Robert Drummond), “Infidelity,” “I Got This 2″ and “Turned Out,” plus “Priest the Lost Son,” a pitch trailer for a “Super Fly” remake that included Hollywood stars Jamal Woolard (“Notorious”), Robin Givens (“Boomerang”) and Clifton Powell (“Selma”).
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