Hakim Warrick finished shaking hands with Team Brotherly Love first and circled back toward midcourt. As he closed in on the black TBT logo, the Boeheim’s Army forward slowly raised his right hand.

Syracuse fans rose from their seats at Onondaga Community College’s SRC Arena and cheered. Warrick turned until he had faced every direction. By then, his teammates joined him.

From July 26-28, BA nearly accomplished its goal to win The Basketball Tournament’s Syracuse region. While the Syracuse alumni team found ways to grind out wins on Friday and Saturday, Boeheim’s Army dropped its third game — one away from a ticket to the eight-team national — on Sunday to Brotherly Love, 84-72. That halted BA’s quest for $2 million, as an inability to put together a complete game on both offense and defense eliminated it from TBT.

“Whenever you’re in the zone and they’re getting those second chance points, it’s tough on the zone,” Eric Devendorf said on July 28. “Because we played so hard for that one possession, for them to get those second-chance points is hard.”

After TBT announced in January that a regional would be held at OCC, an unclear roster started to take form. Devendorf, Warrick and John Gillon announced their returns and Jordan Crawford became only the third non-SU alum to play for Boeheim’s Army. BA had already advanced to three Super 16 and two semifinal appearances in its five TBT appearances, and was given the chance to do so again — this time with home-court advantage.

“It’s going to be tough to defend us,” BA general manager Kevin Belbey said two weeks before the tournament.

In the first-round, BA fended off a potential first-round upset against We Are D3, winning 68-65. Crawford and Warrick’s 17 and 13 points, respectively, were enough to overcome an 11-point first-quarter deficit.

In the opening nine minutes, BA shot 4-for-12, while D3 went 11-for-17. Devendorf talked with Arinze Onuaku about his backside defense as D3 sunk three-after-three. While BA struggled from the field, D3 thrived.

“I don’t think any of us felt we played good all game,” Crawford said. “It’s just about grinding it out.”

Amy Nakamura | Co-Digital Editor

In BA’s second-round matchup against Gael Nation on July 27, BA again found itself facing an early deficit, but Devendorf carried BA back into the game. A floater in the middle. A foul-line jump shot. A jump-ball tie up on defense. Every time Gael Nation tried to build on its lead, Devendorf — the only player on the roster not currently playing professionally — converted.

Late in the third quarter, Devendorf lunged toward Gael Nation guard Steven Burtt and extended his arm. Positioned in front of the Gael Nation bench, Devendorf’s fingertips deflected Burtt’s release and sent the ball in the air. The BA guard dropped to his knees and rolled over. Devendorf slowly dragged his legs toward his chest and laid motionless.

Burtt’s finger had poked Devendorf’s eye, causing it to bleed. By the end of the third, Devendorf had jumped in front of head coach Ryan Blackwell on the sidelines and helped coach, motioning the defense closer together. In the fourth, he tacked on four more points, including the game-winner in the Elam Ending.

“(Devendorf’s) the lifeline of our team,” Andrew White said. “He gets older each year, but that energy never goes away.”

BA’s run came to an end the next day against Brotherly Love. Missed open shots combined with Brotherly Love’s second-chance points generated scoring runs that were never matched.

While BA’s interior and outside offense meshed for the first time all weekend, its defense faltered. Brotherly Love outrebounded BA, 9-1, in the first half. The SU alumni team abandoned its zone defense in favor of man-to-man before the first quarter ended.

For yet another game, it wasn’t a “Syracuse zone,” as Warrick called it. It wasn’t active, and it wasn’t forcing contested 3-pointers. Against We Are D3, a switch to man sparked a BA turnaround. But against Brotherly Love, it only worsened.

A tie at halftime turned into a 13-point deficit by the start of Elam Ending, a hole too big for BA to climb out of. “Let’s go Orange” chants ended, and hours later, all TBT apparel and signage were taken down.

BA’s quest for another nationals run had become a thought of the past.

Published on August 21, 2019 at 1:05 pm

Contact Andrew: arcrane@syr.edu | @CraneAndrew