Syracuse-Kansas: Jonny Flynn's Clutch Shot Leads Orange to 5-0

The Orange quieted anyone who doubted they were for real this season in the Semifinal and Championship games of the CBE Classic, upsetting the Florida Gators (No. 17 AP, No. 18 Coaches) Monday and the Kansas Jayhawks (No. 22 AP, No. 23 Coaches) Tuesday night in overtime.

Jonny Flynn led all scorers Tuesday with 25 points, adding five assists and three steals, but his most important shot came at the end of the second half when he hit his second three of the game to tie it up. This energy continued into overtime, and the Orange outscored the Jayhawks 17-9 to win 89-81.

This win extends Syracuse's perfect record to 5-0 and is the third time in five seasons that they have started this strong.

The Orange trailed by 11 at the half, and with 15:21 left in the second half the Jayhawks were up by 13. Over the next five minutes, though, the Orange went on a 14-1 run to tie the game at 54.

With a little under three minutes to go, Kansas had opened up a six-point lead, but in the final minutes, everything would come down to free throws. Flynn and Eric Devendorf combined for six for six from the line, while Cole Aldrich was the only Jayhawk to make it to the line and had the chance to give Kansas a four-point lead with 20 seconds left.

Unfortunately for the champions of last season, Aldrich missed his second free throw, and Paul Harris grabbed the rebound and got the ball to Flynn for his game-tying three-point shot.

Aldrich's missed free throw was his only miscue of the game as he went five for six, grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds, three steals, and 15 points.

Sherron Collins led the Jayhawks with 21 points, and Tyshawn Taylor added 17.

The last time these two teams met was in the 2003 title game, when the Orange walked away with a three-point win. This was the closest the Jayhawks came to a title under coach Roy Williams, and the following season he made the move to North Carolina.

In the 2003 title game, the Orange and Jayhawks combined to miss 25 charity points, 18 misses coming from the Rock Chalk Jayhawks.

The story was similar on Tuesday, with the two teams combining for 21 free throw misses. Had either team connected better from the line during the game, overtime would have been unnecessary. The Orange were 19-28 from the line during the regular game and finished 25-37, and the Jayhawks were 9-16 during regulation and finished 11-20.

The biggest offender was Flynn, who went 11-16 in his quest for 25 points. Devendorf added 20 points and four assists. Arinze Onuaku grabbed 12 boards, 19 points, and four blocks for his second double-double in as many days, and Paul Harris grabbed a team-high 14 rebounds and added 14 points for his third double-double of the season.

The Jayhawks also had two players with double-doubles: Aldrich with 15 points and 16 rebounds, and freshman Marcus Morris with 11 points and 11 rebounds. It was this season's first for both.

The Orange have a few days off before hosting the Virginia Cavaliers on Friday. Kansas hosts the Coppin State Eagles on the same day.