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Mookie Jones can take at least one thing away from the Empire State Games. When he performed well, the team performed well.
Hudson Valley came up just short in their quest to win the Empire Games gold medal, but not before some solid performances by Mookie. Jones led the team in scoring in their opening victory. In the 2nd game he disappeared, scoring only 9 in Valley's 77-65 win over Adirondack. Mookie returned to form against Western, scoring 24 in Hudson Valley's 87-84 win over them. At 3-0, the team moved on to the Championship game against Western. Mookie once again faded into the pack, scoring only 9, and Western held on for an 86-81 victory to secure the title.
For Mookie, this was a small part of his re-commitment to the game of basketball and to his future. He confirmed to the Journal News that he remains 100% committed to SU and finding his groove with the Orange.
"I'm committed to Syracuse. I don't give up," Jones said after Hudson Valley improved to 2-0 by defeating Adirondack 77-65 Friday at Canisius College. "Hopefully, I get more playing time this year, but otherwise I'm going to keep working hard until it comes. It's an opportunity that sometimes you have to wait for. You have to be patient."
As for MookieJonesTwitterGate 2010, he says "that was a bad move on my part" and that he and Boeheim have hashed everything out. Good to hear. Hopefully only good things from here on out for Mookie.