Saturday is rivalry day, Syracuse style — SU-Georgetown basketball in Washington, D.C., at 1 p.m., SU-Virginia lacrosse in the Carrier Dome at 3.

During the 1980s, Orangemen-Hoyas equaled the premiere clash in the Big East, if not the nation. Today, Syracuse-Virginia is considered by many, including the coach of national-powerhouse Princeton, to be lacrosse’s finest matchup.

The question, then, is this: Which showdown deserves to be called the greatest modern-day rivalry in Syracuse sports?

Rivalry Cemented

SU-Georgetown: Feb. 13, 1980. Georgetown upended Syracuse, 52-50, in the final game at Manley Field House, ending the Orangemen’s home unbeaten streak at 57 games. Coach John Thompson ruffled feathers, pointing out: ‘Manley Field House is officially closed.’

SU-Virginia: May 31, 1999: In the national title game, Syracuse scored five straight goals to close a 10-4 deficit to 10-9 with 3:36 to play before losing, 12-10. UVa, which had suffered four championship-game defeats in overtime since 1980, held on for its first title since 1972.

Advantage: SU-Georgetown (More drama, and a quote more memorable in CNY than anything Shakespeare ever wrote.)

Best Game

Syracuse 89, Georgetown 87 in OT: March 4, 1990

With 2:14 to play in the first half, an irate John Thompson ripped officials for a personal foul call. Three technicals and an ejection later, Derrick Coleman stepped to the free-throw line for eight shots (six for the technicals, two for the personal). He canned seven, and Billy Owens buried a 3-pointer on the same possession for a 10-point play. The Orangemen, who’d gone up court down three points, now led by seven, 43-36.

With one second remaining in regulation, and Syracuse down two, Hoya Sam Jefferson fouled Billy Owens. Owens sank both free throws, and the Orangemen won in overtime when junior Alonzo Mourning’s airball fell short. The crowd of 33,015 established an NCAA record, outdone only by the 33,048 for SU-Georgetown the following March.

Syracuse 22, Virginia 21: Feb. 28, 1997

Two Syracuse records are established — Casey Powell rings up 13 points and the teams combine for 43 goals in 60 minutes.

‘Casual fans hunted down that game film,’ UVa coach Dom Starsia said. ‘In an era with tighter defenses and games being played closer to the vest by coaches, that game really set the lacrosse world on its ear and set this rivalry above a lot of others.’

Advantage: SU-Georgetown.

Greatest Players

SU-Georgetown: Derrick Coleman, Sherman Douglas, Billy Owens; Patrick Ewing, Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutombo. Coleman’s lacking work ethic made him one of the most disappointing No. 1 picks in history. Patrick Ewing, the No. 1 selection in 1985, is a lock for the Hall of Fame.

SU-Virginia: Gary and Paul Gait, Casey, Ryan and Mike Powell; Doug Knight, Tim Whiteley, Michael Watson. The Gait twins put college lacrosse on the map in the late 1980s, then gave way to the Powells, who, beginning in 1995 with Casey, have established themselves as the premiere name in the sport.

Advantage: SU-Virginia. (Compile a list of the top 10 lacrosse players of all time, and the Gaits and Powells might hold down five spots. Ewing is the only player from Georgetown or Syracuse to make the NBA’s top 50 list.)

Current Standouts

SU-Georgetown: Freshman Carmelo Anthony and junior Mike Sweetney. NBAdraft.net predicts Anthony going No. 3 to Memphis this year, Sweetney No. 9 to the Knicks.

SU-UVa: Junior Mike Powell and sophomore Johnny Christmas. Powell will without any doubt go No. 1 in 2004. Christmas — who attended the same high school as Kobe Bryant (Lower Merion High in Ardmore, Pa.) — should, according to one Major League Lacrosse general manager, go top five in 2005 if his stick skills and shot catch up with his athleticism.

Advantage: Push. (Powell is equally as rare a talent as Anthony and is on pace to become the school’s all-time leading scorer and win as many as three championships.)

Coaches’ Resumes

SU-Georgetown: A Hoya assistant since 1979, Craig Esherick succeeded John Thompson midway through the 1999 season. He is 84-55 but can boast only one NCAA Tournament appearance. Jim Boeheim is 643-225 in 27 years here with two national-championship game appearances.

SU-Virginia: Dom Starsia — the only coach among these four not to attend the school he now coaches — is in his 11th season (111-40, one championship). A head coach since 1982, he is one of only three coaches to win 100 games at two different schools (Brown and UVa). Upon graduation from Syracuse, John Desko joined the coaching staff as an assistant. Nineteen years later, he became head coach. In his fifth season, he is 56-11. Each of his teams has reached the NCAA title game, winning twice.

Advantage: SU-Virginia

All-time Series

SU-Georgetown: Syracuse leads, 38-32, the 38th win an 88-80 decision at the Dome on Feb. 3. (For some reason, students did not storm the court.)

SU-Virginia: Orangemen lead, 10-6. The teams met in 1938, 1950 and 1986 before scheduling each other each season beginning in 1994. ‘When I first came to Virginia, I told our athletics director that I wanted Syracuse on the schedule, not because I’m a glutton for punishment but because playing the Orangemen is an experience every college player should have,’ Starsia said.

Advantage: SU-Georgetown. (For every game SU and UVa have met on the field, SU and Georgetown have squared off five times on the court. For that reason, even though five of the 14 lacrosse meetings came in the postseason, the nod goes to hoops).

Saturday Subplot

SU-Georgetown: Fifteen NBA scouts trekked to East Lansing, Mich., last Sunday to see Carmelo Anthony. With this game in a major city and Anthony and Sweetney both projected lottery picks if they enter the draft, expect more scouts to be on hand than at any previous SU game this season.

SU-Virginia: During the fall, Mike Powell said he considered transferring to UVa. ‘Absolutely,’ he said while suspended from SU for academic reasons, ‘I’d go there right now.’

Advantage: SU-Virginia

Combined National Championships

SU-Georgetown: 1 (Hoyas in 1984)

SU-Virginia: 9 (Virginia in 1999; Syracuse in 1983, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1995, 2000 and 2002)

Advantage: SU-Virginia (Chances are, the winner of this game or Princeton wins the NCAA championship this spring.)

In a down-to-the-wire decision, the modern-day SU-UVa lacrosse rivalry beats out SU-Georgetown basketball.

So, if you find yourself on the couch at 2:30 Saturday afternoon and Syracuse and Georgetown are tied with 10 minutes to play, pop a tape in the VCR and go to the Dome.

Chris Snow is a staff writer at The Daily Orange, where his column appears on Thursdays. E-mail him at [email protected].

Published on February 26, 2003 at 12:00 pm