Devendorf's value is revealed

Every day on the Syracuse campus I listen to students' opinions on the basketball team. And almost unanimously, they all criticize Eric Devendorf. He doesn't play defense. He makes stupid decisions. He thinks he's better than he actually is. Nobody seems to like Devendorf. But after today's debacle against West Virginia, I think those opinions are going to change.

Hoping for a rebound after the ugly loss to Cincinnati, I was gravely disappointed as the Orange fell flat for the second time in a row. About 10 minutes in, it was easy to tell who the better team on the floor was. Syracuse kept it close for about a quarter of the game before being overwhelmed on both ends of the floor. In the end, the result was an 81-61 defeat.

The first half was one of the ugliest displays of basketball I've seen by Syracuse in my year and a half while attending the school. There was no offensive flow. None. And how much of this could be attributed to Devendorf's abscence? Probably a lot of it. SU had no outside threat or a guy who could dash to the basket and get fouled. Both of those are in Devendorf's wheelhouse, but it wasn't there today.

Scoop Jardine looked lost. He made some crazy decisions on offense, trying to handle the ball and losing it numerous times. The team dribbled themselves into corners and were forced to turn the ball over too much. And nobody outside of Donte Greene appeared to want to shoot the ball. For the second game in a row, Arinze Onuaku was relatively uneffecitve inside.

The bottom line is, the team just doesn't look like they're having fun out there. Remember those first few games at home, when all the guys were flashing the dynasty sign and smiling up and down the court? There is none of that passion or enthusiasm or swagger left. I think they've all come to realize it's going to take some time to really develop into a national powerhouse. And I don't think anyone is more disgusted than Greene. He has the most talent, but it seems to be going to waste. He just looks pissed off out there. And there were times where he tried to do much...but can you blame him? Who else was going to make a play?

19 turnovers. 23% from 3-point land. 20 first half points. I could give you a bunch of stats like this all day, but the simple truth is the team isn't the same without Devendorf. Looks like he's the heart and soul that drives the team's success, and without him, there's a lack of passion on the court.

Now of course, anything can happen in the next couple months. But with the way the team is playing now, there's not a lot of reason to be optomistic if you're an SU fan. Jim Boeheim has to work his magic and get to these players any way he can.

12-5 (2-2)
Next 3: Rutgers, Villanova, at Georgetown...the Hoyas game is a loss, but the team could take the other two.
Realtime RPI: 27 and going down

-ajd