Being Jim Boeheim: One game through the eyes of the coach

Feb 11, 2020; Syracuse, New York, USA; Syracuse Orange head coach Jim Boeheim reacts to a call against the North Carolina State Wolfpack during the second half at the Carrier Dome. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports
By Matthew Gutierrez
Feb 12, 2020

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — About 2½ hours before tipoff, Jim Boeheim parks his SUV in the lot down the hill from the Carrier Dome. For decades, he has pulled into the same small lot merely yards from Sadler Hall, the SU dormitory where he lived a few rooms down from former NFL coach Tom Coughlin in the mid-1960s. Boeheim walks across Forestry Drive to the stadium control entrance in the southwest corner of the building. He enters and turns left. He goes down a long hallway toward the Syracuse locker room, where he makes final preparations for that day’s game.

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This is how Boeheim, the Orange’s head coach for 44 seasons, begins every home game. During the day, nobody bothers him. Not his children, not his wife. The hours leading up to a game are about focus, concentration, spending time in his own thoughts. On Tuesday before Syracuse hosts North Carolina State, this is no different. It’s his 1,456th career game as head man of his alma mater. In many ways, he’s a man of superstition. He’s not going to deviate from a process that has worked: In nearly five decades, he has never had a losing season.

Soon Boeheim will walk out of the coach’s room in the Carrier Dome and begin coaching, berating officials and drawing up plays. So for two hours, I watched not the Orange and the Wolfpack. Rather, I studied the Hall of Fame coach, jotting down everything he did and anything I heard him say from my seat between the Orange bench and the basket. It is intended to provide a window into Boeheim’s process, seeing the game as he does. Roughly 120 minutes from his perch.

2:42, pregame — Boeheim emerges from the tunnel behind the Syracuse bench. Tonight his song is Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark.” Sometimes it’s “Glory Days.” Andrew Clary, the team security officer and a Syracuse University Department of Public Safety officer, provides the escort. Boeheim turns left when he reaches the court named after him. He walks past his assistants Adrian Autry, Gerry McNamara and Allen Griffin. He keeps his head down, mostly. At midcourt he shakes hands with N.C. State coach Kevin Keatts and his staff.

Meanwhile, the student section, situated behind the basket at which SU shoots in the second half, cheers. Sometimes, they bow to him. “Hey Jim!” a student yells. Boeheim is wearing dark pants, a dark jacket and a blue button-down underneath. His wife, Juli, picks out his attire for home games and road trips. Years ago he wore the old plaid suits. Now he carries a modern look. After shaking hands with officials Michael Stephens, Mike Eades and Brian Dorsey, he stands by himself. He puts his hands in his pockets as he walks to the bench. He scratches his head.

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20:00, first half — After the national anthem, a student manager pulls out Boeheim’s chair and faces it toward the SU bench. The starters — Elijah Hughes, Buddy Boeheim, Joe Girard, Marek Dolezaj and Bourama Sidibe — sit in front of him. Written on a piece of tape across his chair: “Coach Boeheim,” distinguishing his seat from the rest. He sits three seats in from the scorer’s table. The manager hands him a mini whiteboard, and he scribbles something down for his team to see. His address lasts 14 seconds. The Orange break, Boeheim says a few words to Guerrier, and then he sits in his seat for tip. He finds his trademark sitting pose, with his right hand on his chin.

At tipoff, his face shows slight concern as N.C. State appears to win it. But SU gets the ball and begins its offense. He relaxes.

19:46 — Wolfpack guard Braxton Beverly picks up an early foul. Boeheim nods in agreement. His son, sophomore guard Buddy Boeheim, proceeds to drill a 3-pointer from the left wing. The coach has no reaction. On N.C. State’s next possession, N.C. State sets screens near the top of the key, designed to block Buddy. Boeheim yells from the bench: “Watch right!” and points where the screen is coming from.

18:57 — For the first time tonight, Boeheim stands after Buddy misses a mid-range jumper. He’ll spend most of the night standing. He wails his arms in the air. Then Hughes throws the ball away. Boeheim looks at him as SU jogs back on defense. “Hey!” he yells toward Hughes. He waves his arms some more.

18:20 — N.C. State’s first basket happens when D.J. Funderburk sneaks behind Sidibe and goes up for a layup. Boeheim stares at Sidibe, the source of his frustration all season long, and says: “Move your feet! Rebound!” Boeheim turns right and points at Guerrier, SU’s sixth man. Guerrier jumps up and goes to the scorer’s table.

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Few coaches in college basketball make fewer substitutions than Boeheim, long a proponent of a starting five that plays most of the minutes. Per KenPom.com, the Orange annually rank near the bottom of the country in bench minutes. Sometimes, his first sub doesn’t come until midway through the first half. Not tonight.

17:27 — At some point, Hughes had gestured to the bench that his groin was hurting. He’d hurt it in practice. He comes out and is replaced by backup point guard Brycen Goodine. Nobody knew at the time, but Hughes will never reenter the game. The ACC’s No. 2 scorer (19.4 points per game) is out. Meanwhile, Boeheim berates Sidibe as he sits on the bench. Then he places his hands in his pockets and watches his team without its star for the rest of the game.

15:21 — Girard bricks a runner. At a stoppage, Boeheim waves him over. He points at Buddy to replace Girard. Boeheim, in more words, asks Girard what he was thinking on the play. Seconds later, Sidibe rushes out to defend the corner 3-pointer. He leaps to try to contend the shot, but he loses control and fouls C.J. Bryce. He’ll shoot three free throws, prompting Boeheim to yell out, “Bourama, what are you doing?” Syracuse leads, 7-6.

11:34 — At the under-12 timeout, NC State leads, 12-9. Boeheim offers a few observations, and Sidibe and Guerrier nod. They drink water and wipe sweat with towels. Boeheim keeps his messages brief during timeouts, especially in recent years, because he came to realize players don’t digest too much information. He keeps most timeouts centered on one or two points; otherwise, he worries they’ll forget.

At this point, the Orange are just 3-of-15 from the field and have committed four turnovers. But they’re in the game. Boeheim answers a question from Guerrier and puts his right arm to break the huddle. “Let’s go,” he says. He sits on his seat and takes a squirt from his green Gatorade bottle.

On one of the next plays, Markell Johnson drills a 3-pointer from straightaway. “You gotta get up on him,” Boeheim tells Buddy. “He can’t be open like that,” he then tells the bench.

8:30 — Guerrier grabs an offensive rebound and finishes his put-back. Boeheim claps forcefully, clearly pleased with his freshman’s performance. Guerrier will finish this game with 16 points and 10 boards, both career highs. On SU’s next possession, Girard grabs the rebound and goes up the floor. He scores an and-one. Boeheim takes his hands out of his pocket and claps again. N.C. State leads, 20-18.

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5:27 — Boeheim sits and grabs the bottle that resides underneath his seat. Guerrier is shooting free throws, a ripe time for Boeheim to address his team. He likes them back, ready to set up the 2-3 zone, rather than standing in the lane as SU shoots free throws. He looks at Buddy. “Hey Buddy, get to the wing,” he says, pointing to the left wing near the SU bench.

3:59 — Bryce drills another 3. He’ll finish with 19 points on 4-for-6 shooting from deep, and he has stepped into one here. Bullseye. Boeheim puts his hands on his forehead. Then he slams his arms together. A few seconds go by, and he yells at Eades, one of the officials. “Throw the jacket, Jimmy!” a student yells.

2:38 — Marek Dolezaj just scored a nifty and-one. He completes the three-point play and Boeheim claps his hands. Then Jericole Hellems flashes to the high post, catches the ball and scores a floater in front of Sidibe. “You gotta get out,” Boeheim tells him. He puts his hands up. On the next SU possession, Sidibe nearly loses the ball when he brings it down. Boeheim gestures that he needs to hold the ball securely and keep it high.

00:02 — Buddy is called with a foul right before the horn sounds for the end of the first half, and because it’s in the bonus N.C. State will shoot free throws. Boeheim is furious. “That’s not a foul!” he says. As Bryce shoots free throws, Boeheim argues with Stephens. He folds his arms. “That’s a horrible call!” he says again. He shakes his head after the clock expires. He yells at Stephens some more. “I’m going to give you a technical foul!” Stephens warns. Boeheim shakes his head and turns toward the tunnel, where he’ll address his team.

Halftime — N.C. State 39, Syracuse 35. Boeheim keeps his halftime message brief and to the point. Usually, it concerns defensive tweaks to the zone. He doesn’t talk long, and SU usually returns to the court for the second half before the opponent. During the intermission, Boeheim drinks his halftime Pepsi.

Boeheim keeps is straight with his team, offering encouragement or criticism depending on the moment and what it requires.

2:45, pre-second half — Boeheim emerges from the tunnel again and stands on the sideline. He watches some warmups. He utters a few things to his team. Pete Corasaniti, director of operations, and Autry, the associate head coach, mention a few items to Boeheim. He says: “All right” and takes a seat with his whiteboard in hand.

19:15, second half — Guerrier makes a strong move to the basket, but he lofts an awkward runner-layup hybrid from about three feet away. His shot doesn’t even hit the rim. Boeheim is not a fan. He wails his arms. “What the fuck is that?” he says.

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18:17 — Boeheim tosses off his jacket. For the remaining 18-plus minutes, he’ll stand on the SU sideline without it. The Carrier Dome crowd falls silent. “Fucking bull shit” he yells after an N.C. State corner 3 extends the Wolfpack lead to seven. N.C. State will shoot 11-of-25 from 3 on the night.

17:03 — Girard dribbles up court and sets up the half-court offense. Syracuse operates a top-25 offense, per KenPom.com, because there are shooters and playmakers and they share the basketball. There’s hardly any frontcourt offense, but the perimeter game has been good enough to keep most games tight.

On this trip, Boeheim calls a play with his right hand. First, Dolezaj flashes to the top of the key. Then, on the weak side, Sidibe sets a down screen for Buddy. He gets open and lets a 3-pointer from the wing fly. He misses, but Guerrier is there to clean it up and collect two points on a put-back. SU is down by two, 46-44. Boeheim claps on the sideline. The crowd is engaged again.

16:21 — Sidibe picks up his fourth foul, infuriating Boeheim. More foul trouble in his frontcourt, the last thing the Orange need. He shakes his head. He points at backup center Jesse Edwards to enter. Before Sidibe makes his way toward the bench, Boeheim stops him. He holds him, tells him to calm down, stop fouling. Then he gives him one final look, a stare, and says nothing. Sidibe finds a seat.

Syracuse’s next offensive play runs through Edwards, who had sprinted down the court and earned himself good position to score near the hoop. He draws a foul. “Yes, Jesse!” Autry yells. Boeheim claps. Two possessions later, Edwards jogs out of the paint to set a high-ball screen for Buddy, dribbling near the left wing in front of his dad. Boeheim wants Edwards not to screen because Buddy is so close to the sideline. But Edwards does anyway, and it frees up Buddy. He drives toward the basket and finishes in the paint. The N.C. State lead is cut back to one, 50-49.

12:28 — Johnson throws a lob to Manny Bates, who throws it down. Boeheim especially doesn’t appreciate open 3s and alley-oop lobs against his zone. He throws his hands in the air. Two possessions later, however, Buddy hits his first 3 in a while. Boeheim claps his hands and then gestures to play defense. It’s a tie game. The crowd stands up and yells.

10:37 — More optimism for the future of Syracuse’s bench reserves follows. Guerrier feeds Edwards in the paint and the Orange take the lead, 58-56. The crowd stands and reaches its loudest noise level of the evening. Boeheim is as pleased as he has been all night, offering a slight nod and clap of his hands.

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9:46 — After Beverly drills a 3 from the wing, Boeheim stomps his feet. He’s upset at Guerrier, a forward at the bottom of the 2-3 zone, for not bumping up to the wing and better defending the shooter. Boeheim calls Guerrier over while Girard shoots free throws moments later. He points to the wing area, pleading for him to cover it.

7:48 — Boeheim calls a play, putting four fingers in the air. Edwards comes out to the high post. Buddy catches the ball, but he’s called for a travel, one of his five turnovers on the night. Syracuse would commit 15 in the game, an uncharacteristic figure. Boeheim argues with Eades about whether it was a travel. Eades doesn’t say anything back.

6:52 — Boeheim makes a fist with his right hand. Girard makes another fist, relaying the play call to the other four players on the court. It’s a high-ball screen from Edwards. Girard dribbles right, around the screen, and enters the paint, challenging his man. He gets a floater to go. “Get back!” Boeheim says, waving for his guys to retreat on defense. Then Girard, one of the best free-throw shooters in the country, swishes two free throws the next time down. Syracuse leads, 68-62.

4:25 — Daniels drops a bucket in the paint after Syracuse is too slow to rotate in the zone. It’s not on one person. It’s on a few. For years, Syracuse’s zone defense has generally slowed opposing attacks, especially inside. Not this year. Syracuse ranks 139th in the country in defensive efficiency, per KenPom, its worst mark since the 2016-17 season, an NIT year. Boeheim folds his arms and looks down. The SU lead is gone, with NCSU up one.

3:11 — “That’s a technical foul!” Boeheim yells toward Dorsey, one of the officials. Devon Daniels has blocked Girard and then stared him down, which prompted Boeheim to ask for a technical on Daniels. “My guy didn’t say a word,” Boeheim says, though Girard did. “Get the fuck out of here,” Girard told Daniels during the staredown. By now, the Wolfpack lead, 74-70. Time is running out, and packs of Orange fans already begin to file for the exits.

1:35 — Syracuse is down four points, playing defense. Boeheim tells Girard to come up, play closer to the perimeter. “I know!” Girard tells his coach from the other side of the court. Syracuse forces a miss. SU has a chance to make it a one-possession game again. But Buddy turns over the ball on a pass. Boeheim has no reaction. He folds his arms.

0:42.0 — N.C. State presses full court. Dolezaj, who is 6-foot-10, continues to channel his inner point guard and brings up the ball the whole way. He tries to hand off the ball to Buddy, but N.C. State is all over him. The Wolfpack have been all game, holding Buddy to 10 points. He entered the night fifth in the ACC in scoring. Dolezaj turns over the basketball, and more fans grab their coats and leave. Boeheim sighs.

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17.0 — Hughes isn’t on the floor, so SU doesn’t have its go-to scorer. Girard misses a 3. He finishes with 30 points, a Carrier Dome record for a Syracuse freshman. Not even Carmelo Anthony scored 30 at home. But Girard’s 30 goes overlooked because Syracuse loses. Edwards misses his put-back attempt. Boeheim sighs, exhales deeply and tells his team not to foul. He shakes everybody’s hand in line. He walks, head down, through the tunnel, amid a few cheers. His team follows him off the court.

00:00 — The final horn sounds at the Carrier Dome, and N.C. State wins, 79-74. It’s SU’s third loss in its last four games. Syracuse loses another tight game and falls further outside of the NCAA Tournament bubble. The Orange rode a five-game win streak in January, but they’ve now lost three of their last four.

Postscript — About 20 minutes after the final buzzer, Boeheim walks down the hallway from the Syracuse locker room and coach’s room toward the media room. He never wears his jacket to the presser, regardless of whether he throws it off during the game. He grips the podium with both of his hands and sometimes glances at the box score in front of him.

For years, he has maintained a reputation as follows: Ask a bad question and he’ll make sure you know you did. Always brief, always blunt. Then he retreats back to the locker room. On Tuesday, after a loss that drops SU to 6-5 since New Year’s and 14-10 overall, this holds true. His press conference lasts 3 minutes, 26 seconds. He says Hughes somehow injured himself in warmups — which has never happened in his 44 years as head coach, he says. “We’re not making enough shots at the 3-point line,” Boeheim says. “They were very good without (Hughes). Exceptionally good. We battled hard. Hopefully we get Elijah back. We probably won’t know until Saturday. … They’re a pressure team and that’s where he thrives. Very disappointed not having him tonight. Thank you.”

Boeheim returns to the coach’s room, where he and his staff reconvene and dissect what happened. Eventually, he leaves the Carrier Dome, walks back down the hill near his old dorm and drives home to Fayetteville, away from the only school he has known.

(Photos: Rich Barnes/USA Today Sports)

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