Men's Basketball

Christmas keeps Orange close in season-ending loss to Dayton

Yuki Mizuma | Staff Photographer

Rakeem Christmas walks off the court at First Niagara Center after Dayton beat Syracuse 55-53 on Saturday. Christmas kept the Orange in the game during the first half on both ends of the floor.

By David Wilson

BUFFALO, N.Y. — When everything was going wrong for Syracuse at the start of the game, Rakeem Christmas of all people was the one keeping the Orange afloat.

No. 3-seed SU trailed No. 11-seed Dayton 11-4. Christmas had all four of Syracuse’s points.

“In our games, we haven’t started particularly well,” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. “Tonight was no exception.”

Christmas finished with only six points on 3-of-5 shooting, but his offense early in the game kept the Orange within striking distance. He stayed out of foul trouble for long enough to anchor Syracuse’s defense in a low-scoring, 55-53 loss to the Flyers on Saturday at First Niagara Center in the third round of the NCAA Tournament.

He blocked three shots and committed another goaltending violation early in the game — his third of the NCAA Tournament — to help match the gritty tone that UD set.



“They’re a small, but they’re scrappy,” SU forward C.J. Fair said of Dayton. “They kind of set the tone early.”

The Flyers found ways to pick apart the Orange’s zone, but none of UD’s looks in the paint came easy. Christmas swatted away three attempts and altered nearly every other one while he was on the floor.

And most importantly, he was able to stay on the floor. The forward didn’t pick up his first foul until the second half and was able to stay on the court for 37 minutes.

Just over two minutes after he picked up his first personal, though, he picked up his next and headed to the bench. But only 1:01 later, Boeheim had seen enough and sent Christmas back into the game.

Christmas made another hook shot late in the game as the offense was forced to maneuver primarily in the lane.

“We just wanted to attack,” Christmas said. “Just try to draw fouls and get some layups.”

It wasn’t a perfect game for the junior by any stretch, but it was a solid outing and a positive sign for a team with an uncertain future. Frontcourt staples Fair and Baye Moussa Keita are graduating. Jerami Grant and Tyler Ennis could bolt for the NBA. That could leave Christmas as the closest thing to a star at Syracuse.

The former McDonald’s All-American has always had potential. Games like Saturday’s serve as a reminder, but now he has to cash in on it.





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