TBT: Boeheim’s Army upset by Nerd Team 81-74 in Round of 32

Some late life wasn’t enough to prevent an early exit

After an explosive outing last night, Boeheim’s Army came out flat against The Nerd Team. Despite a remarkable comeback attempt, it was just too little, too late as the defending champs were knocked out in their second game, 81-74.

Matt Morgan and Dee Bost once again led the BA offense with 36 combined points. Rakeem Christmas was next in line with 16 points after a relatively quiet game yesterday. Tyler Ennis did not play today due to back spasms.

Much of the game was reminiscent of what Syracuse Orange fans saw far too often last season – an overmatched defense coupled with a cold streak on offense. BA only shot 1-10 from 3 in the first half, while TNT went 9-15.

The 25-13 Q1 score grew to 46-31 at halftime, with the hometown crowd sounding more like they were at the opera then a basketball game. The one thing keeping BA around was the foul differential, as they had 27 free throw chances on the afternoon compared to TNT’s eight.

Boeheim’s Army finally caught fire in the 4th quarter, going on a 12-0 run into the Elam Ending and continuing to cut down the deficit. The Nerd Team started to overextend and opened up fast break opportunities which the Army continued to capitalize on. Sounds of “Let’s Go Orange” filled SRC Arena as if it were the Dome. But even that wasn’t quite enough as TNT chipped away at the eight points they needed to win.

With their backs against the wall, C.J. Fair gave BA one last chance with a huge blocked shot, but it wasn’t enough as Tyler Nelson hit a three to reach the target score of 81.

The Nerd Team will advance to face Blue Collar U Monday night at 7.