Fans traveled well down to Paradise Island in the Bahamas to watch a fun semifinal tussle in the Battle 4 Atlantis.
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Syracuse capped off an exceptional run in the Battle 4 Atlantis by topping Texas A&M, 74-67, in the tournament championship game on Friday.
As I wrote on Friday, it’s very hard for defenders to guard Lydon when he’s playing either power forward or center, which is the majority of the time. Rather than picking up three victories and returning with the championship trophy, the Huskies followed their opening game win over MI with back-to-back losses to Syracuse and Gonzaga.
Alabama 64, No. 20 Wichita State 60: Not only did the Shockers drop their second straight at the AdvoCare Invitational, but they also saw Anton Grady leave the game on a stretcher after being involved in a scary second-half collision.
The MVP of the game has to be Tyler Lydon. He handles it, he gets to the basket, he can shoot it and he plays great defense. The Orange improved to 6-0 while the Aggies fell to 6-1.
Daniel Hamilton had 18 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists for UConn, and Rodney Purvis and Sterling Gibbs each had 12.
“We just got to keep getting better as a team”, Kennedy said. “We were in a drought in the first half and the second half and really allowed them to take over the game, and in transition they really hurt us with the 3’s”. Walton knocked down a three-pointer of his own on the next possession, extending the lead to 12-5. UConn rallied again and trimmed that lead to 79-76 with 36.8 seconds left.
UConn: The Huskies were 5 for 11 from 3-point line in the first half.
Syracuse’s Trevor Cooney then almost dribbled the shot clock out, Harlem Globetrotters style, and unleashed a wild 3-pointer with about four seconds left that was way off the mark.
UConn: The Huskies struggled from the free-throw line, connecting on just 14 of 21 attempts….
This is a big sign for the Syracuse Orange, as many expected them to flounder during this season dealing with sanctions from the NCAA. Five players scored at least 13, and the Orange recorded 41 rebounds to UConn’s 33. He was the first player to reach double figures when his reverse layup gave A & M a 19-18 lead. He also had a couple of steals near the middle portion of the half that helped Syracuse get back into the game.
“When we shoot like that, we don’t need a lot of people”, coach Jim Boeheim said. “I think we were rushing things”. (The players) are playing, I should be able to call timeouts in those situations…. That should be a coaching decision. Both teams hit some tremendous shots. But by the time he stood isolated in the corner of the court, hands at his hips after recording his fourth foul with in the second half, it was clear that CT had no answer for how SU would fight back.
“It’s definitely something that can happen”, added Ollie. “I think both universities would like to continue that rivalry….”
“We’ve got a big test with Gonzaga”, said Kevin Ollie.
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After a slow start, the Huskies’ offense began to click with 14 minutes to play. Texas A&M added a meaningless lay-in at the final horn and the Battle 4 Atlantis title went to the Orange.
