Rosemont, Ill.- Scoop Jardine and Kris Joseph might both excel as slashers, but the sophomore duo also struggles in the same category: shooting the 3.

Heading into Saturday’s afternoon contest against DePaul, Jardine and Joseph had connected on just 9-of-44 shots (20.5 percent) from beyond the arc. When it came to shooting the long ball, the duo simply could not be counted on for Syracuse — until Saturday.

The duo both hit clutch 3-point shots and provided starter-like play off the bench during Syracuse’s 59-57 win over DePaul. While normal 3-point aces Wes Johnson and Andy Rautins shot just 3-of-14 from beyond the arc, Jardine and Joseph hit both their shots to help cut DePaul’s lead from nine to two late in the contest.

‘It really came down to Kris Joseph had a good look, and he’s making those shots in the practice, he’s not making them in the game,’ Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. ‘He made a 3 and then Scoop made one. He made one last game, so it’s not out of the realm, but when you’re not playing well somebody has to do something, and they both made big shots.’

With Syracuse trailing 52-43 with fewer than seven minutes remaining, Joseph launched a 3 from right of the basket and connected on just his fourth 3-pointer of the year. The shot cut SU’s deficit to six with 6:54 left.

‘Coach Murphy’s been telling me to shoot the 3 ball all year, and we work on it before and after practice,’ Joseph said. ‘Especially in this game, we’re playing from behind and we needed some type of production offensively, and he said I had to make sure to shoot the open 3 and today I did. I have to give thanks to Coach Murphy.’

Later, with DePaul clinging to a 54-49 lead and 4:29 to go, Jardine nailed a 3 from the right wing that sliced the lead to two. Syracuse tied the game on its next possession on a dunk by Wes Johnson.

Johnson was pleased to see his teammates hit such big shots for Syracuse after their struggles from that range all season.

‘Honestly, I don’t know the last time Kris or Scoop made a 3, but those two 3s they hit were very big 3s,’ Johnson said. ‘When I passed it to (Kris) I was like, you’re open, shoot it, and he shot it because he makes them in practice. He always shoots them in practice and makes them, so he has to shoot with a lot of confidence, which he did.’

Rautins can’t find stroke

Andy Rautins kept firing away, but it didn’t change anything. Shot after shot, the senior’s 3-point attempts consistently rattled in and out of the basket, rarely finding their mark. His shot just wasn’t falling.

Despite the fact that Syracuse won the game, Rautins had his worst shooting day of the season for a game in which he made a basket, finishing 2-of-10 from the field. All of his shots were 3-point attempts.

‘It’s tough, but as a shooter you have to keep shooting,’ Rautins said. ‘ I’m going to keep doing that, get some good shots up in practice and go back to the mechanics and work it out so I can’t think about it. I probably should have used my dribble a little more to get to the rack. I got a little too comfortable with that, so next game I’ll make some adjustments.’

Within the first seven minutes of the game, it was evident it wouldn’t be an easy day for Rautins. He missed his first three shots in that span, often having the open look.

Teams such as Marquette have stymied Rautins by face-guarding him the whole game, but that didn’t affect the senior on this game. Rautins found space against the DePaul guards, but he could not finish his shots. His two 3-point shots came almost 20 minutes apart, as he hit one in the waning minutes of the first half and one to cut DePaul’s lead to 52-49 with 5:43 remaining.

‘Andy got good looks,’ Boeheim said. ‘It was just one of those game where he wasn’t making anything.’

This and That

Arinze Onuaku played just 17 minutes, adding one rebound and six points. … Brandon Triche missed both of his shots in the game and played just three minutes in the second half. … Syracuse scored a season-low 59 points. … Johnson recorded his 10th double-double of the season and now has scored double digits in 21 of 22 games. … Outside of Brandon Reese’s minute against Georgetown, DePaul marked the fourth straight game where Boeheim utilized a seven-man rotation. … Mookie Jones has not played since Jan.16 against West Virginia.

mrehalt@syr.edu

Published on January 31, 2010 at 12:00 pm