PHILADELPHIA – Eric Devendorf was walking out of the locker room – one of the last two players left – after Syracuse’s 80-65 loss to Villanova on Saturday night. He didn’t have to talk to reporters, and after dropping SU’s second straight game, playing 28 minutes while being guarded by one of the best defenders in the Big East and staring a trip to Pittsburgh in the face, the last thing Devendorf probably wanted to do was answer questions about his team’s poor performance. But he did. Because when you score 21 points against the No. 8 team in the country, it comes with the territory.

Devendorf was impressive in the second half for the Orange, helping to rally a comeback attempt from what proved to be an insurmountable first-half deficit. But he also made some mistakes, including fouling Villanova star Randy Foye when Foye was shooting a 3-pointer after the Orange cut the Wildcats lead to four points in the second half.

It was a freshman error, but a costly one. Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim cited that defensive error in the second half, but also complimented Devendorf’s overall performance.

He was able to connect on 7-of-13 from the field, including 2-of-3 from the beyond arc. He was also a perfect 5-for-5 from the foul line. Though Devendorf came around picks and off screens, Villanova’s Kyle Lowry was there to shadow him.

‘I try to go out there and play my game every game,’ Devendorf said about rising to challenge of Villanova’s guards. ‘It doesn’t motivate me too much because I try to motivate myself. But we didn’t get the win, so it didn’t really matter.’

Big men come up small

Boeheim looked at the reporters in the press room – some of whom may be twice the age of his players, others of whom are half the size – and complimented the media.

Well, sort of.

‘Our inside people can’t score against you,’ Boeheim told the members of the press. ‘Our centers haven’t contributed for a couple games now, and that doesn’t make it easier.’

Center Darryl Watkins fouled out despite playing only 16 minutes. He scored a meager two points and only grabbed five rebounds. Terrence Roberts scored 20 points, but five came on jump shots (including the fourth 3-pointer of his career) and three came from the foul line. The rest were all dunks. But a large bulk of that scoring came in the second half. In the first half, Syracuse only scored 14 points in the paint.

When playing a four-guard offense, it’s imperative that a team has success from the interior. Otherwise, the pressure will become suffocating.

‘Four guards can work wonderfully well a lot of the time,’ Boeheim said. ‘But sometimes you can take advantage of it. We can’t take advantage of it. And when you can’t take advantage, they’ll take advantage of it.’

Wachovia Center crowd

Villanova plays most of its home games in The Pavilion – an on-campus athletic facility. For marquee games, though, the games are moved to South Philadelphia’s Wachovia Center, where the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers play. Villanova hosts three teams there this season: Syracuse, Connecticut and Louisville.

Connecticut and Louisville will have a lot to live up to – Saturday’s game was sold out and the 20,581 fans were the most to see a college basketball game in Pennsylvania. It broke the previous record of 20,270, which was set at the Wachovia Center in the 2001 NCAA East Regional on March 24, 2001. That game was between Duke and Southern California.

Coincidentally, the NCAA Tournament returns to Philadelphia this season when the Wachovia Center plays host to the first and second rounds on March 17 and 19.

This and that

Former Syracuse quarterback and current NFL star Donovan McNabb, who also played basketball for Boeheim from 1996-1997, attended the game. … Villanova guard Randy Foye played with Gerry McNamara during the summer’s World University Games. They were coached by Villanova head coach Jay Wright. … Villanova guard Allan Ray was high school teammates with Louie McCroskey at St. Raymond in the Bronx.

Published on January 22, 2006 at 12:00 pm