The way Eric Devendorf jumped over mid-court, punching the sky and screaming to the Carrier Dome roof, one would think Syracuse’s freshman guard had just won the NCAA Tournament.

In reality, SU had only beaten Manhattan in an early season non-conference game, but the path to victory left the Orange feeling like it’d just endured a March dogfight.

In one of the most frantic meltdowns and comebacks in recent memory, Syracuse used the final two minutes of regulation and overtime to storm back from a late 11-point deficit to defeat Manhattan, 87-82, in the Carrier Dome on Wednesday night in front of 19,193.

‘It was a relief that we got that game out of the way and we got away with a win,’ Devendorf said. ‘It wasn’t one of the best games we played at all, but it was a win, so that’s all that matters.’

Syracuse led by as many as 24 in the first half and took a 20-point lead into halftime. A complete second-half meltdown ensured the Orange would need to scramble to vindicate its first-half domination.

Down nine points with 55 seconds left to play, Syracuse used a Darryl Watkins put-back slam and two Gerry McNamara 3-pointers to creep within three at 79-76. Then Devendorf struck from the deep left wing with 14.2 seconds left to tie the game at 79.

A Terrence Roberts reverse layup with 48 seconds left in overtime gave SU a one-point lead, which it would not surrender.

‘If you stopped and analyzed it, you’d say the game was over,’ SU head coach Jim Boeheim said. ‘But we kept digging and made one or two good plays.’

Still, the Orange saw the win as more escape than triumph.

As has been the case for most of the season, SU played brilliantly in stretches while titanically collapsing in others. The difference in first and second half play against the Jaspers put the Orange’s inconsistencies on full display.

On offense, eight Syracuse players totaled 38 points in the first, led by a sensational nine-point, four-assist first-half performance from Josh Wright.

SU held Manhattan to just 18 first-half points, using smothering interior defense and quick perimeter contention. The Jaspers shot just 20.7 percent from the field, including 10 missed 3-pointers.

‘Defensively and rebounding-wise, we were as good as we played all year in the first half,’ Boeheim said. ‘Second half, we went right back defensively to the way we’ve been playing and did not rebound the ball. … We just stopped doing the things that got us the lead.’

Manhattan scored 61 second half points, only four shy of the all-time record for an SU opponent. With Watkins on the bench with foul trouble for nearly 10 minutes in the second half, the Jaspers’ interior offense sparkled with 20 points in the paint.

Watkins left with SU ahead, 41-24. He returned with the Orange up only five.

‘Every minute I was sitting on the bench, the 20-point lead was just trickling down,’ Watkins said. ‘It’s very frustrating. We play good for three minutes, but you need to play a good 20 minutes and 40 minutes.’

Watkins notched a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds, but credit the SU backcourt tandem of McNamara and Wright with saving the day, scoring 25 and 19 points, respectively.

Still, the maddening lapses in overall play left Boeheim feeling as if the Orange didn’t deserve to win.

For the fans, it was a thrilling spectacle. For Syracuse, it was merely a reason to scratch its head in relief.

‘We should’ve never won this game; they just outplayed us the second half, completely dominated the game,’ Boeheim said. ‘We shouldn’t have won this one. We have to be happy we did, be thankful.’

Published on November 30, 2005 at 12:00 pm