Siena’s game as good as Syracuse’s, maybe better

Last week’s six-overtime Big East thriller between Syracuse and UConn was a riveting battle of attrition, but was it well played? Many have challenged that fact. Great theater, bad basketball.

In contrast, nothing about Siena’s double-overtime win over Ohio State was of low quality. The Saints got a huge pair of 3-pointers from Ronald Moore, but battled toe-to-toe throughout the contest. And give the Buckeyes their due — they by no means did the Big 10 a disservice.

But the magnitude of the game — the winner continued its season — made Friday night’s game even more important. Syracuse’s win was a thrill to watch, but didn’t change much in the grand scheme of things.

Siena’s win, meanwhile, gave a conference credibility and earned the Saints a crack at the nation’s top-ranked team.

Tourneys mean nothing, but Flynn’s effort still incredible

Six overtimes speak for themselves. You didn’t have to watch Thursday’s Big East quarterfinal to know it was a classic basketball game in every sense of the word. Emotions ran hot. Guys who don’t ever play were on the floor when the game was decided.
But while Syracuse’s win over UConn was the greatest I’ve ever watched, it really didn’t mean a thing. Maybe it knocked the Huskies out of a No. 1 seed, but it probably shouldn’t.
Nothing reminded me how ridiculous conference tournaments are as an innocent question my better half asked: Why was this such a big deal?
I didn’t have an answer.

Now that I’ve knocked the merits of a classic confrontation, to watch Jonny Flynn’s smile light up Madison Square Garden the way it did the Wolvearena was the highlight of the year.
We knew Flynn was special when he led Niagara Falls to a state title, but the moment when I realized how special he’d be was the Under-19 World Championships, where Flynn was the ringleader on a team that featured Stephen Curry, Michael Beasley and Deon Thompson.
Imagine how good he’ll be on a team of NBA stars?
I’ve got a feeling we’ll find out soon.

Give Rosenhaus credit … gulp …

Nobody saw this coming. Nobody. But before we delve into the logic behind why the Bills would sign Terrell Owens, let’s give a thought to why T.O. would want to come to Buffalo.

Is it possible the glare of the spotlight finally burned him out? Is he ready to settle in and play football, rather than plead for headlines? The media attention he’ll get here is a fraction of what he got in Dallas. The guys he’ll be in the locker room with are, for the most part, pretty low-key. There’s little chance he and Trent Edwards will become adversaries with Edwards’ humble nature. Same goes for Dick Jauron.

It pains me to say this, but give Drew Rosenhaus credit — he found a place for his client where he really should have a chance to success.

Kotalik: Won’t miss him for 65 minutes, but we’ll miss him

Color me confused about the move that sent Ales Kotalik to Edmonton for a second-round pick Wednesday.

Kotalik has been expendable for much of his career in Buffalo. Despite his size, he struggled to dig pucks out on the half-wall and was never the power forward his skill set teased us into thinking he might be.

But the Sabres are in a dogfight for a playoff spot. Every point will count down the stretch. And chances are a few shootout wins could tip the scales.

Kotalik, of course, has been lights out in shootouts this season, perfecting his top-shelf backhand.

Why hold a guy like that all this time, then dump him for a measly second-rounder just when you’ll need him most?

Vets like Lydman can’t make boneheaded mistakes

Anyone else catch Toni Lydman giving up the puck in his own zone on Tuesday, a horrible piece of positioning that directly led to the first goal in the Sabres’ loss to Anaheim?

It’s the kind of giveaway a veteran defenseman can’t make in normal circumstances. But certainly not when his team is without its two most important players in Ryan Miller and Thomas Vanek.

Buffalo needs to play nearly flawless hockey to put together a winning record over this stretch. If so, and the stars return healthy and rested, the Sabres could be a in a great spot with seven of 12 games in March at home.

But with experienced guys like Lydman coughing up the puck at inopportune times — like the move that gave Teemu Selanne a breakaway and the first goal on Tuesday — they’ve got little chance to hold on to a playoff spot.

Letting Murphy’s bygones be bygones

Calvin Murphy has hardly been a model citizen. He’s the father of 14 children — from nine different women. And some of the charges levied against him in the past, none of which he was ever convicted of, are despicable.

But Murphy has persevered, and his appearance at Friday’s BracketBuster between Illinois State and Niagara was as smashing a success as could be possible.

Like him or don’t, Murphy is the best to ever played at Niagara — and to see him welcomed back was heartwarming. And classy.

Rangers getting what they deserve

It’s great to watch the Rangers sinking like a stone in the Eastern Conference. New York dropped nine of 11 after Saturday’s loss to the Sabres, and this with an overpriced bunch (read Scott Gomez, Wade Redden, Markus Naslund and a certain Chris Drury) that was supposed to contend for the conference’s top spot.

So, as is always the case, the team fired its coach on Monday. Perfect.

Here’s my favorite line from the New York Post blog linked above:

“Maybe (Jaromir) Jagr left at the right time, only one year after (Glen) Sather signed waning talents Scott Gomez Scott Gomez and Chris Drury Chris Drury to wildly overpriced contracts.”

It’s time to repost a note we send out to general managers ever year — NHL teams are built through the draft, not free agency.

UB’s Gamble is paying off

I’m not afraid to admit when I’m wrong — UB’s decision to move Niagara Falls’ Greg Gamble to the point has been an irrefutable success.

Earlier this season I said in this space that the UB senior didn’t have the skill set to handle all the team’s ball-handling duties in the rough-and-tumble Mid-American Conference. I still have my doubts whether Gamble’s the right guy to be bringing it up at crunch time, but since he’s a pass-first guy anyway, his distribution has been invaluable on a team that has shooters in Andy Robinson, Calvin Betts, Rodney Pierce and Sean Smiley.

On the other end, there’s no debate — Gamble’s defense has made him a crucial piece of UB’s eight wins in nine MAC starts.

Give Reggie Witherspoon and his staff credit, this was clearly a Gamble worth taking.

’Cuse’s bubble chances are slipping

Hate to say we’ve seen this before, but can you feel that berth in the NCAA Tournament you assumed Syracuse had locked up slowly slipping away?

The Orange have lost five of their last seven, including four straight on the road. It doesn’t get any easier — they travel to No. 1 UConn on Wednesday.

It’s not Jonny Flynn’s fault — he’s been the best player on the court for Syracuse almost every night.

Interesting how at crunch time Syracuse consistently struggles, especially on the road.

Hard to believe those non-leaguers at home against Cornell, Colgate, Oakland and Canisius didn’t have Syracuse battle-tested.

Get Benn off the point

Bilal Benn is a monster. The guy’s everywhere on defense, has a knack for reading where rebounds are headed, and has been a pretty good finisher for Niagara in his first season on Monteagle Ridge.

But with guys like Anthony Nelson and Rob Garrison alongside him in the backcourt, Benn doesn’t need to be handling the ball much. He did it plenty against Siena on Saturday — most likely in an attempt to match the junior against taller, slower forwards. And while he only had three turnovers, all three were unnecessary. One was just a sloppy pass. Another, he tried to get too creative in the lane and dish it down low.

Benn isn’t horrible with the ball in his hands, but he’s on a team filled with guys who are great. With one of the most creative wizards in the league on the roster — Nelson had 10 assists on Saturday — the Purple Eagles are best if Benn gives it up and gets to the glass.

(FYI — that is our guy Jonah Bronstein staring blankly in the back of this photo while wedged between Benn and a defender. Also, our friend Amy Moritz from the Buffalo News is at the table. Kudos to our photographer for getting both college beat writers in one shot. And the action, too! Anyone have an idea what Jonah’s looking at? A cutie in the N-Zone perhaps?)