Syracuse doesn’t deserve to be in the NCAA Tournament?
Don’t try telling that to Malachi Richardson and the Orange.
The freshman guard from New Jersey scored 21 of his 23 points in the second half as the Orange used a 25-4 second-half run to stun No. 1 Virginia, 68-62, at Chicago’s United Center and storm into the Final Four.
“Man, this is a dream come true for me,” Richardson, the former Trenton (N.J.) Catholic star who added 7 rebounds, said on TBS. “This is something I’ve always wanted to do and I thank God for it.”
Syracuse, the first No. 10 seed ever to make the Final Four, will play the North Carolina-Notre Dame winner in an All-ACC national semifinal on Saturday in Houston.
“I had a couple bad turnovers [in the first half] and coach [Jim Boeheim] got on me at halftime. I know I had to pick it up for my teammates,” Richardson said. “We were down and I just wanted to make an effort and help us come back and we did it.”
With Virginia’s loss, all three No. 1 seeds are out, leaving the Tar Heels as the last hope for the 1s. Kansas and Oregon both lost on Saturday.
When the Tournament field was announced, many felt Syracuse didn’t deserve an at-large bid, with Monmouth fans especially upset that the Orange got in over them.
Boeheim, who served a nine-game suspension this year for NCAA violations, said this week that he felt the NCAA Selection Committee should look at a team’s past results as part of its resume.
Now it hardly matters as the Orange, a former Big East outfit, will join current Big East member Villanova and Oklahoma of the Big 12 in Houston.
“I’m so proud of these guys,” Boeheim said on air. “Virginia’s a great team. They beat us three times in a row, they had a 15-point lead. They just didn’t give up. They never gave up. They just kept making plays and Malachi stepped up for a freshman and then Mike [Gbinije] and Trevor [Cooney] and the whole team. It was a whole team effort and these guys really deserve it. They beat a great basketball team and I’ve never been prouder in all my 40 years of a basketball team than I am of of this team.”
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On social media, numerous athletes chimed in on Syracuse’s win.
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Malachi Richardson made New Jersey proud today.
– Karl-Anthony Towns (@KarlTowns) March 28, 2016
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Also this is just awesome:
What is y’all next excuse we haven’t played a good team, we shouldn’t be in the tourney!!!! Tell me please please!! ������������
– Michael Carter-Willi (@MCW1) March 28, 2016
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter And like ZAGS on Facebook NSyracuse doesn’t deserve to be in the NCAA Tournament? Don’t try telling that to Malachi Richardson and the Orange.Jim Boeheim on his way to the #FinalFour like… pic.twitter.com/0m4RbOceJh
– Justin Hardie (@OrangeHardie) March 28, 2016
