Demetris Nichols has a wish for all of us.

You know those hot-shooting streaks he has a habit of going on? He can’t put them into words, so he needs some help.

‘I can’t really explain how it is,’ Nichols said. ‘It’s a great feeling. I wish you all could experience it.’

Syracuse fans might love the chance to step in Nichols’ shoes, but I think they’d rather see his teammates do an impression. After all, if it wasn’t for a career-high 37 points from Nichols in Syracuse’s 76-74 squeaker over St. John’s, this column is about booking Spring Break plans for Syracuse to see the first round of the NIT.

‘We knew this game was probably going to determine the rest of our Big East season,’ SU guard Andy Rautins said. ‘It was kind of a must-win for us. We came out and got it and we’ll try to keep it going in the Big East.’

Last Monday night after the Orange’s demoralizing loss to Connecticut, SU forward Terrence Roberts probably summed up Syracuse’s season as best as anyone has to this point.

‘It pisses me off because we’re so much better than what we’re showing right now,’ Roberts said. ‘It’s like we’re out there just playing. We look like a team that can’t even play with each other. That’s what I see when I’m out there. Just five guys that don’t really want to be out there, just out there playing street ball just going one-on-one.’

Unbelievably, Sunday was different. The big men set screens. Nichols and Rautins hit their shots. Darryl Watkins and Roberts combined for 18 rebounds. The Orange had seven more assists than turnovers.

Everything meshed. The half-court offense revolved around Nichols, but that can happen only in the rarest of occasions. He’s that good of a shooter.

According to Boeheim, everything was fine, that is, except for the defense.

‘We just haven’t done the things defensively we have to do if we want to win,’ SU head coach Jim Boeheim said. ‘Demetris isn’t going to get 37 every night. I hope he can, but I don’t think he can. We have to play better defense if we are going to finish the season the way we want to.’

Exactly. Nichols isn’t going to score those points every night. But Boeheim is wrong about the defense. Sure, Syracuse needs better defense to win, but it’s too late in the season for old habits to change.

Syracuse needs to play better on offense if it is going to finish the season the way it wants to. And it’s all up to those other two seniors.

Watkins finally found his December groove again on Sunday. He scored 11 points on 3-of-3 shooting and 5-for-8 from the free throw line. Those 11 points were one more than his last two games combined. Those 11 points were his most since Villanova, almost one month ago.

Roberts battled foul trouble and disappeared on offense for the third-straight game. He’s scored 13 points total in the last three games. This is after five straight of 11-plus points against Big East opponents.

Nichols doesn’t think Syracuse needs another shooter.

‘We just need to play together,’ he said. ‘We need to play smart. If somebody’s hot we just have to give that person the ball.’

But that’s what has gotten Syracuse in trouble before. Nichols can get on streaks like Sunday, but there are streaks the other way. No one else on Syracuse can be the go-to scorer. The Orange needs balance if it is to make a run and get back into the national bubble debate.

St. John’s? Check. The five remaining games on Syracuse’s Big East schedule? Boeheim isn’t talking about his team’s NCAA Tournament chances to his players.

‘I never talk to my team about that. Ever,’ Boeheim said. ‘We just try to play the next game. You guys talk about that. Have fun with it.’

‘That’s true. Whatever he says is true,’ Nichols said, laughing. ‘Coach is trying to stress us to take it day-by-day and game-by-game. If we do what we’re supposed to do – if we win out – no problem. We’ll see what happens at the end of the year.’

I’ll take Boeheim’s offer and have fun with it.

You want a turning point in this season of mediocrity and inconsistency? It’s Nichols scoring half of Syracuse’s points in a win that kept the Orange’s slim NCAA Tournament chances alive. If that doesn’t inspire the rest of SU, I’m not sure what will.

Matt Gelb is an asst. sports editor for The Daily Orange, where his columns appear occasionally. E-mail him at magelb@gmail.com.

Published on February 10, 2007 at 12:00 pm