I first used this picture in my preseason preview of SU Orange basketball, and it seemed fitting to use it again. The funny thing is, when I found it the second time, it came from an article about how Jonny Flynn is overrated.

Hardly.

As an SU fan first, student second, I was upset about one thing and one thing only from last night's game.

Jonny Flynn showed the world how good he really is—good enough to impress pro scouts and maybe draw Flynn away from school and into the draft.

Syracuse is still a young team with only one senior that gets legitimate playing time in Kristof Ongenaet. The only player I see having a real shot at being a first round pick is Jonny Flynn. It remains to be seen how he'll play in the tourney, but if he decides to come back, Syracuse will be scary good.

If he doesn't, I'm scared of how the team will play without him leading the way.

Last night was the epitome of Big East basketball. It was the game all Big East followers knew was going to come from a historic conference season. The best of the best on the biggest stage.

Almost four hours and six overtimes later, we had witnessed a rivalry win in a famous arena with crazy shots--made and almost made, with walk-ons grabbing clutch rebounds and bench players nailing threes.

But with beloved Gerry McNamara cheering on his Orange in Madison Square Garden, what else but the best game in Big East Conference history could've been played?

Eric Devendorf and Andy Rautins combined to pull off McNamara's magic last night, but Devendorf didn't provide enough to let us all go to bed a couple hours earlier.

However, people forget that Syracuse just had to play defense up by two late in the fourth. On the last possession, UConn missed a couple of shots but got the rebounds, and the ball fell to Kemba Walker, who made the game-tying layup with just over a second left. I fell to the floor.

I was thinking overtime the whole way. 1.1 seconds? No way. But somehow the long in-bound pass got tipped right to No. 23, who drained the shot at the buzzer. I then proceeded to wake up all five other occupants of my house with cries of joy.

False alarm.

Sorry?

Then in overtime it looked like it could get away from the Orange as they were trailing by four. Where's McNamara when you need him? How about Andy Rautins? Rautins hit a big three to pull the deficit to just one. UConn missed a free throw, and 'Cuse trailed by two with seconds left.

Jonny Flynn started to take over. He penetrated deep into the lane and gave the ball off beautifully to Rick Jackson, who threw down an easy dunk to tie the game. The Huskies missed a buzzer-beater, and to the second overtime we went.

They traded baskets in the second, and Flynn missed a game-winning shot, as did Kemba Walker, to force a third OT.

This is when it looked like UConn would take it. Syracuse was down by six twice in the period, 87-93 and 91-97. But they kept battling, and Connecticut kept missing free throws. The Orange pulled it to 95-98 and needed more McNamara magic.

Rautins came up huge again and tied the game with a trey coming off a screen, forcing OT number four. Again the fam was awoken by shrieks typically unknown to mankind.  

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