2008–09 Syracuse Orange men's basketball team
2008–09 Syracuse Orange men's basketball
The 2008–09 Syracuse Orange represented Syracuse University in NCAA Division I men’s basketball. Jim Boeheim was the head coach, in his 33rd year, and the team played home games at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York. They finished with a 28–10 overall record and an 11–7 mark in the Big East Conference. Syracuse reached the finals of the Big East tournament but finished as runners-up.
Key players included seniors Kristof Ongenaet and Paul Harris, juniors Eric Devendorf, Arinze Onuaku, and Andy Rautins, sophomores Rick Jackson and Jonny Flynn, and freshman Kris Joseph. The Orange lost their top scorer from the previous year, Donté Greene, who left for the NBA. Wesley Johnson joined the team as a transfer but was required to sit out the season. Scoop Jardine was out for the entire year with a stress fracture. Syracuse added recruits Kris Joseph, Mookie Jones, and James Southerland, though Southerland did not qualify academically and returned to preps to play another year.
The team opened the season ranked around the top 30 nationally. They started strong, winning the CBE Classic tournament, defeating No. 17/18 Florida in the semifinals and No. 22/23 Kansas in the final; Flynn was named tournament MVP. A midseason setback came on December 15, 2008, when Syracuse lost to unranked Cleveland State on a late 60-foot buzzer-beater. They bounced back with a notable road win over Memphis on December 20, 2008.
One of the season’s most memorable moments happened in March 2009, when Syracuse and Connecticut played the longest game in Big East history, a six-overtime matchup that Syracuse won 127–117. Jonny Flynn set a Syracuse single-game record by playing 67 minutes, and the game helped propel Syracuse into the NCAA Tournament.
In the NCAAs, Syracuse earned a No. 3 seed in the South Region. They defeated Stephen F. Austin 59–44 and Arizona State 78–67 to reach the Sweet 16, where they fell to Oklahoma 84–71. The tournament run marked the end of the season for several players who would turn pro, including Flynn, Harris and Devendorf.
In the Big East tournament, Syracuse advanced to the final, defeating Connecticut in the quarterfinals in a game that lasted six overtimes and is the longest game in Big East history. Syracuse then defeated West Virginia in the semifinal before losing to Louisville in the championship game, 76–66. Jonny Flynn was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, the first time a player on the runner-up team earned the honor in Big East history.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 01:18 (CET).