Orangemen

Senior attackman Michael Powell scored six points to become Syracuse's all-time leading scorer with 288, and goalie Jay Pfeifer tied his career high of 19 saves in the fourth-ranked Orangemen's 13-9 win over No. 5 Georgetown yesterday in Washington. Powell tied the record, held by his brothers Casey Powell and Ryan Powell, with a fourth-quarter assist on a goal by Brian Nee that gave Syracuse (11-2) a 10-8 lead with 14:33 to play. He broke the record at the 12:17 mark, assisting on Brian Crockett's goal to make it 11-8.

DENVER -- The long road back to Lawrence is paved with bricks for the Kansas Jayhawks. So is the one Syracuse is taking to this season's Final Four, but the Orangemen and their much maligned coach, Jim Boeheim, couldn't care less.So what if Syracuse forward Todd Burgan clanked three straight free throws in a matter of 17 seconds and gave Kansas some hope down the stretch? So what if guard Jason Cipolla missed one of two with a little more than 12 seconds left to give Jacque Vaughn a chance to send yesterday's NCAA West Regional final into overtime?

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Todd Burgan, a sophomore swingman from Detroit, found the range when Syracuse needed it most.Burgan had made just 31.9 percent (23 of 72) of his shots in the eight previous games, but he was six of 11 in yesterday's 77-69 victory over Mississippi State, including four of five in the second half. Burgan also had struggled at the line, making five of 19 in Syracuse's three previous games, but he made all four of his second-half free throws."All week the coaches have been telling me that free throws are a mental state," Burgan said.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- The nine lacrosse coaches responsible for Syracuse's No. 1 ranking in the USILA's preseason pollneglected to take the schedule into account.No. 3-ranked North Carolina ambushed the Orangemen, 14-10, in their opener yesterday.Coaches Dave Klarmann of North Carolina and Roy Simmons of Syracuse agreed that southern sunshine, a spongy grass field and a Tar Heels team with two games under its belt placed the Orangemen at a disadvantage."We weren't in our element," said Simmons.

NEW ORLEANS - The Syracuse Orangemen nearly lost their grip on a game they controlled for lengthy stretches, but in the end, they had just enough left to take home the first national championship in school history. Syracuse freshman forward Carmelo Anthony and freshman point guard Gerry McNamara combined to score 38 points, Kansas nearly overcame a meltdown at the free-throw line, and the Orangemen survived three game-tying, three-point attempts by the Jayhawks in the final 15 seconds to escape with an 81-78 victory and the NCAA title last night before 54,524 at the Superdome.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Syracuse upheld its tradition of producing its finest lacrosse in late May, while Notre Dame performed like an outclassed participant that had never before hung around this long in a season. Yesterday's 12-5 NCAA tournament semifinal victory by the defending national champion Orangemen before 21,103 at Rutgers Stadium was every bit as lopsided as the score indicated. Notre Dame, which rode a nine-game winning streak into its first-ever final four appearance, found out firsthand why the Orangemen have gone to 19 consecutive final four games.

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- Syracuse coach Roy Simmons asked goalkeeper Jason Gebhardt at the post-game news conference to stand, turn around and show the back of his T-shirt. It read: "Expect to win."It represented true Orangemen mystique -- confidence and poise -- even though that was nonexistent yesterday. No. 3 seed Syracuse needed back-to-back saves by Jason Gebhardt in the final minute to fend off upstart No. 6 Loyola, 13-12, in an NCAA lacrosse tournament quarterfinal before 8,065 at Hofstra Stadium.

COLLEGE PARK- Princeton coach Bill Tierney wasted no time casting his Tigers as decided underdogs against the big, bad Syracuse Orangemen in today's NCAA championship game at Byrd Stadium. Pardon Syracuse for refusing to buy it. Sure, Syracuse probably expected to play Virginia for the title. Sure, the Orangemen are five weeks removed from blasting Princeton, 16-4, matching the worst defeat Tierney has suffered in 13 years there. Sure, Syracuse appears to have the offensive talent capable of asserting itself almost on cue. But one look at the Orangemen's subdued, post-game celebration after its 14-12 semifinal victory over Johns Hopkins revealed the Syracuse state of mind.

No team likes to play Syracuse at the Carrier Dome. The loudspeakers blare high-decibel rock music, the surface is artificial and there is no air-conditioning, not to mention that the Orangemen are virtually unbeatable in the place with an 86-6 record.But one of those losses came Tuesday when the Orangemen were routed, yes routed, 15-7, by Virginia.Now, No. 2 Johns Hopkins (3-0) has to play the No. 1 Orangemen (2-1) in the Dome tomorrow in one of the sports' greatest rivalries. Between them, Syracuse and Johns Hopkins have combined to win 12 of the 24 NCAA Division I men's lacrosse titles.