The first half of the Syracuse Orange's Monday night laugher against Manhattan had SU fans on their feet clapping.
The second half had Orange fans on their feet clapping as well. Not by choice, most of the time.
The time-honored tradition of clapping before the first SU basket of a half was put to the test when the Orange went almost seven minutes before scoring in their otherwise-uneventful 92-56 thrashing of the Jaspers.
BTW, those of us who survived that 12-minute scoring drought to start a game against Providence in '98 or '99 aren't impressed by your complaining.
Fab Melo didn't take over the game statistically, though his 11 point, 9 rebound, 4 block performance was impressive. However, it just seemed like Fab was anywhere and everywhere in this game. He somehow found himself involved in every play, for better or worse, in the first half. Maybe it wasn't all pretty, but it was pretty impressive to watch the big man move. It's way too early to start talking about Most Improved Player awards but Fab is lining himself up swimmingly.
Dion Waiters came alive as well, leading the Orange with 17 points in 19 minutes of action. The first guard off the bench is making a serious case to enter the starting line-up, if that even matters really. Brandon Triche posted 12 points while Scoop Jardine laid a goose-egg in the scoring department and took a backseat as his teammates took over. Scoop has said he's willing to do whatever it takes to win and knowing when it's not your night is part of that.
Not to be forgotten, James Southerland added 15 points, six rebounds and four assists in 19 minutes of action. C.J. Fair also put together a pretty complete game with five points, six rebounds, two assists and five steals.
Kris Joseph scored 15 points and eclipsed the 1,000 career point mark in the first half, becoming the 55th player in program history to do so.
"It means a lot to me," said Joseph of reaching the milestone. "Growing up, I always told myself whatever college I go to, I want to be a part of that club. It is a great honor and an elite club to be a part of. Fortunately enough, I was able to do it here at Syracuse University."
The only thing left for Joseph to do is just start wearing pants during a game, which he obviously seems to want to do.
The way the Orange were shooting in the first half, it's surprising no one else broke the 1,000 point barrier. The Orange shot shot 57.9 percent from the floor over the first 20 minutes, while converting 16 Jaspers turnovers into 22 points.
Syracuse now moves on to play the Albany Great Danes, who defeated Brown earlier in the day, Tuesday night at 7pm in the 2nd round of the NIT Season Tip-Off. The winner moves to Madison Square Garden whee they'll face either Virginia Tech or the winner of George Mason/FIU (full NIT bracket).