Kaleb Joseph made it past the first half’s under-16 media timeout.

That’s not much of a feat for a starting point guard, but it’s been far from a guarantee for the freshman this season. Against Pittsburgh on Saturday, Joseph survived for more than six minutes before he drove toward the basket and traveled in traffic.

As the play unfolded, SU head coach Jim Boeheim flapped his arms in frustration before turning and pointing at Ron Patterson to sub into the game. When Patterson hesitated, Boeheim turned again and yelled for the backup guard to hustle to the scorer’s table.

By the time the Panthers inbounded the ball to start the next play, Joseph was on the bench chatting with assistant coach Gerry McNamara. It’s a spot he’s been in often this season, but will look to continue clawing out of when Syracuse (15-8, 6-4 Atlantic Coast) travels to face Boston College (9-13, 1-9) at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.

The Orange has lost four of its last six games and is not eligible for any postseason play after the university announced a self-imposed ban last week. And because the season has a set end date, progress from its mercurial first-year point guard is the kind of thing SU will look for down the stretch.

“Kaleb’s a good player and he’s going to keep getting better,” SU forward Michael Gbinije said after Syracuse fell to Pitt. “I know he wants to put it all together right now but it will come with time. He’s playing well.”

As Trevor Cooney has been quick to say since the beginning of the season, the Orange was spoiled with top-of-the-line point-guard play in the two seasons before this one.

Two years ago, Michael Carter-Williams utilized his length on both ends of the floor to quarterback SU to the Final Four. Then he won the NBA Rookie of the Year with the Philadelphia 76ers.

Next was Tyler Ennis, who immediately put himself in the “best freshman in the country” conversation before foregoing his final three years of eligibility and being selected just outside of the lottery by the Phoenix Suns.

Joseph hasn’t exactly fallen in line with predecessors, but showed flashes of his untapped potential at times.

“I don’t think Kaleb is the kind of player to shy away from the pressure that comes with following those guys,” said Vin Pastore, who coached Joseph with the Mass Rivals AAU team, in a November interview. “Those guys set a high bar for Syracuse point guards and he’ll work hard to get to that level.”

Boeheim’s been highly and publicly critical of Joseph throughout the season.

At the beginning of the year Joseph was shooting too much from the outside. In the middle of it he was dribbling in circles without attacking the basket. Most recently, it’s been the freshman’s defense keeping him off the floor late in games.

But with Cooney in foul trouble on Saturday, Joseph played 28 minutes, his fourth-highest total in ACC games, and went for nine points, his third-highest count in conference play.

His points came on just five shots, as he made his sixth 3 of the season and shot a perfect 4-for-4 from the line. Yet he also finished the game with three turnovers and no assists, while Pitt guards James Robinson and Chris Jones combined for 28 points while shooting 6-of-13 from beyond the arc.

“I think I got better defensively and that helped me get more time,” Joseph said. “But I can be a lot better there, a lot more active.”

On Jan. 20, the last time the Orange faced the Eagles, Joseph tallied a season-second-best 13 points and seven assists in what still stands as his best game of the conference season.

And after taking steps forward against the Panthers, the under-12 media timeout is in his sights.

Said Joseph: “It’s a growing process game to game, but I feel confident in what I’m doing.”

Published on February 11, 2015 at 12:19 am

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