Syracuse Basketball Throwback Thursday: Recognizing Otis Hill

Otis Hill was born in 1974 in White Plains (NY) as the second of four children. It was there that Hill would grow to be a star at Pleasantville High School playing both football and basketball. Basketball ultimately won out as Hill committed to play for Jim Boeheim at Syracuse University.

Hill came to The Hill and would redshirt in his freshman season as he figured to sit the bench behind senior Conrad McRae. During his freshman campaign, Hill would start all but one game. He would average 7.9 points and 5.6 rebounds, solid numbers for his first official year as a Syracuse Orange.

In Hill's sophomore season he would lose his father to a heart-attack -- a loss that would deeply affect him and his performance on the court. The loss hurt him so bad that he would be superseded by J.B. Reafsnyder at starting center. Reafsnyder was two inches taller than Hill, but Hill was more effective and he would prove that throughout the rest of his career.

After two poor exhibition performances to start his junior season, Hill got into an altercation with Jim Boeheim and walked three miles from the Carrier Dome to his off-campus apartment. One year after losing his father, Hill would eventually put the pieces of the puzzle together in the 1995-1996 season -- the then Orangemen would need it, too, on their way to the 1996 Final Four, which included a close call to Georgia in the Sweet 16. Syracuse overachieved that season -- nobody expected them to make it that far in the NCAA Tournament. They would make the championship game but only to fall to Kentucky 76-67. Syracuse was overmatched by a Wildcat team that featured Antoine Walker, Tony Delk and Ron Mercer. It was a tremendous season.

Hill had one more season of eligibility and would be Syracuse's best player in his swan song. Without John Wallace and Lazarus Sims, Hill averaged 15.7 points and 6.1 rebounds in the underwhelming 1996-1997 season. His play would lead him to be taken in the fifth round of the CBA draft. Hill would grab a cup of coffee with the Idaho Stampede before heading overseas where he bounced around and had a solid professional career.

These days, Hill works as a correction officer of sorts, where he works with troubled youth who have committed serious crimes.

Hill is now a father of two daughters. We're unsure if he's still king of the hill, or over the hill, but one thing is for sure: Otis Hill established himself as one of the best basketball players to ever play at Syracuse.