WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2014 SPORTS Syracuse sink Notre Dame SYRACUSE: Trevor Cooney has his shooting team since the 2011-12 season. Two years ago, one of those zones, and you’ve got to take your touch back - just in the nick of time for top- the Orange were unbeaten and ranked No. 1 hat off.” ranked Syracuse. Cooney scored a career-high 33 when they went to South Bend, and Notre Dame Cooney, 9 of 12 from long range, matched the points, matching a school record with nine 3- upset them 67-58. record set by Gerry McNamara in the 2004 NCAA pointers, and the Orange beat Notre Dame 61-55 It was the eighth time Notre Dame had beat- tournament and equaled by Andy Rautins in on Monday night in another matchup of former en a No. 1 team and turned out to be Syracuse’s 2008 and James Southerland in 2012. Big East foes. lone loss of the regular season. Jerami Grant and Fair, who combined for 54 After struggling to a woeful 25.4 percent (14 “That was in the back of my mind,” said C.J. points against Duke, combined for just 15, while of 55) from behind the arc in his first seven Fair, who had a season-low six points on 2-of-13 Tyler Ennis found little room in the lane to pene- Atlantic Coast Conference games, Cooney has hit shooting after scoring a career-high 28 against trate and finished with six points and eight 11 of 13 in the past two games and was the dif- Duke. “I didn’t want that to happen again.” assists. ference against the Irish as the Orange’s front line Cooney made sure there was no repeat, hit- Garrick Sherman led Notre Dame with 16 points, Steve Vasturia had 13, and Pat Connaughton 11, while Eric Atkins had nine on 3- of-10 shooting. Notre Dame closed within 38-32 on a 3-point- er from Atkins with 14:19 to play, but Syracuse responded with seven straight points. Grant slammed home a dunk after his block on Sherman and Fair followed with a slam off a Grant miss. Cooney completed the run with his seventh 3-pointer, which tied his personal best. SPAIN: A basketball and a Naismith trophy are displayed during the FIBA The Irish have four long-range threats in Atkins, Basketball World Cup official draw for the 2014 World Cup, at the Palau de la Connaughton, Vasturia, and Demetrius Jackson, who had combined for 127 3-pointers on the Musica in Barcelona. The competition will take place from August 30 to season entering the game, and Notre Dame’s September 14 in Spain. —AP long-range attack came alive in the second half after going 1 of 6 in the first 20 minutes. Two 3-pointers by Atkins, Vasturia’s three- US to take on Turkey in point play and a slam dunk by Tom Knight moved the Irish back within 43-40 with 8:41 basketball WCup group to go. Grant responded with a spinning drive BARCELONA: The United States will play orations. But the home audience through the lane and Cooney hit another 3. Turkey in the group stage of this sum- groaned when France was placed in Grant then fed Cooney for a reverse layup and three-point play and Cooney hit his ninth 3 for a mer’s World Cup of Basketball in a Spain’s path after the hosts had already 54-44 lead with 4:14 to play. Notre Dame refused rematch of the 2010 final. drawn Serbia and Brazil. to wilt, pulling back to 54-49 on Connaughton’s The rest of the opposition in Group C Spain coach Juan Orenga said that three-point play at 2:52. looks a lot easier, with the Americans the group has “four teams that can fight “That’s who this group is,” Brey said. “We also drawn on Monday to play the for a medal,” but that might not neces- haven’t been able to get over the hump and win Dominican Republic, Finland, New sarily be a bad thing. enough. We’ve been down on the road just Zealand and Ukraine. “If you face tough adversaries at the about every time, and we come back and give Trevor Cooney in action in this file photo. ourselves a chance. I love that about us. If we Host Spain, meanwhile, has a tougher start, things can be easier later as you keep doing that enough, I think we’ll get a cou- Group A with European champion advance,” Orenga said. “But we have to faltered. “It feels good,” Cooney said. “I kind of got ting five 3-pointers in the first half as the Orange ple of them.” France, Serbia, Brazil, Egypt and Iran. The make it through the group.” going and guys just found me in good spots.” gained a 13-point halftime advantage, then bare- Grant’s layup off a feed from Ennis and two US will open its title defense on Aug. 30 The top four teams in each group Syracuse (22-0, 9-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), ly held the Irish at bay in the second half. free throws by Ennis boosted the lead back to against wild-card entry Finland, with the advance to the knockout rounds to be which moved to No. 1 this week after its scintillat- “We put ourselves in position to make it eight, and the Orange made it interesting when Group C games played in the northern played in Madrid and Barcelona, with ing 91-89 overtime victory over Duke on interesting,” Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said. Ennis and Fair each missed the front end of 1- Basque city of Bilbao. the medal games in the Spanish capital. Saturday night and Arizona’s loss to California, “We came into this game, and especially if you and-1s in the final minute. Atkins missed a floater extended its school record for most consecutive watch what they did to Duke, beating them up and Connaughton was off on a 3-point attack in The US beat Turkey in the final four Kevin Durant and Kevin Love have wins to start a season. in the paint. You really try to take stuff away in the final seconds. years ago, when the tournament was said they will return to the team, Notre Dame (12-11, 3-7) has lost seven of the paint. I thought overall with the guys that “I had a look and missed, which would have known as the world championship. “We although the rest of the roster hasn’t nine. Two days after one of the most emotional destroy you in the paint we did a good job. But been a really big shot for us,” Atkins said. “That have some tough teams in the group,” been set. Durant was named the 2010 wins in Jim Boeheim’s 38 years as head coach, we couldn’t do a good job on Cooney. Seven of was a huge play. But they played great. They said Team USA’s executive director Jim tournament’s most valuable player after Syracuse played its first game as the nation’s top the nine I think we challenged. He was just in made plays when they were needed.” —AP Tooley. “Turkey is very strong. But we leading the US to victory in Istanbul. can’t overlook anyone. We have learned “Durant and Love have come out as that from the past.” wanting to be the leaders of the group,” The US and Spain are in groups on Tooley said. Two weeks ago, Team USA OSN to offer live coverage of opposite sides of the bracket, meaning named a 28-man pool it will later use to the title favorites can’t meet until the form 12-man rosters for both the World Sept. 14 final. Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games. Sochi Winter Olympics in HD Group B includes Argentina, Greece, “Everyone on the list is interested,” Croatia, Senegal, Philippines, and Puerto Tooley said. Rico. 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