Kevin Quinn, Syracuse’s senior vice president of public affairs said in a statement:
“At the direction of Chancellor Cantor, Bernie Fine’s employment with Syracuse University has been terminated, effective immediately.”
Bobby Davis and stepbrother Mike Lang were the first two accusers to come forward, but this week they were joined by a third accuser, Zach Tomaselli, who claims Fine molested him in 2002 in a Pittsburgh hotel room.
UConn loses to Central Florida – Huskies blow a 17-point lead and struggles against a 2-3 zone. Need lots of work if they want to top Syracuse. Ryan Boatright played his first game Saturday in a 78-76 overtime win over No. 20 Florida State. The freshman had 14 points and three assists. He adds another ball handler and will help this team in the long run.
Photo Courtesy of Brandon Weight
Syracuse wins NIT – The Orange, in the wake of the Bernie Fine scandal, won the NIT Season Tip-Off in a convincing win against a solid Stanford club. This Cuse team is deeper than usual. Also Fab Melo looks great since dropping over 30 lbs. in the offseason. Right now tops in the Big East.
Villanova downed by Saint Louis – This loss isn’t terrible because I believe that Saint Louis is an overlooked team, they’ll compete against Xavier and Temple this year. The Wildcats are young, but Maalik Wayns had a career-high 29 points.
Cincinnati upset by Marshall in OT – I really think the Bearcats could take that next step and be a legitimate Big East contender this year, but after this loss I don’t know. The Thundering Herd could be the second-best team in C-USA, but this is a win Cincy should have had at home.
Pitt takes care of Penn/Robert Morris– Panthers had a little hiccup in that loss to Long Beach State, but I think they’ll make up for it if they can get good wins over Tennessee and Oklahoma State. Also Khem Birch recording 10 boards in his first start against Penn is a positive. The freshman added 11 in a 10-point win against Robert Morris.
Photo Courtesy of Matt Wickham
DePaul moves to 4-1 – The Blue Demons picked up a pair of wins against Texas Tech and Arizona State this weekend. I like this team. Oliver Purnell shows he can rebuild. He’s got two good young pieces in Brandon Young and Cleveland Melvin and from this point on a pretty easy non-conference schedule.
South Florida takes care of FAU – A couple of nice wins against Georgia Southern and Florida Atlantic without Augustus Gilchrist. They need the big man back soon with road games against VCU and No. 14 Kansas coming up.
St. John’s loses to Northeastern – It’s a young team and a short rotation. Also not favored by a tough schedule. The Red Storm have losses against No. 16 Arizona and No. 18 Texas A&M. Coming up is a game against soon to be No. 1 Kentucky.
Friars lose first two – It’s going to be a process by I feel Ed Cooley has this team on the right track. This year is just going to be a tough one for Providence. However Vincent Council has a had a good year averaging 18 points and 5 dimes.
“I remember being disgusted in a sense,” Davis told ESPN’s Jeremy Schaap. “He would start put his hand on my leg, then gradually put his hand in my pants and try to touch my penis.”
“If I resisted, which I did, he would get more aggressive.”
The story has been out since 2003, but not reported due to no corroboration, until Davis’ 45 year old stepbrother, Lang came out and said he had also been molested after spending a lot of time with Fine.
“Probably 15-20 times,” said Lang, answering how many times Fine had groped him. “I didn’t feel right about it and I told that ‘Bernie please don’t do that to me.
“This matter was fully investigated by the university in 2005 and it was determined that the allegations were unfounded. I have known Bernie Fine for more than 40 years. I have never seen or witnessed anything to suggest that he would been involved in any of the activities alleged. Had I seen or suspected anything, I would have taken action. Bernie has my full support,” said Boeheim.
“This kid came forward and there was no one to corroborate his story. Not one. Not one. … This just is not true,” Boeheim told the Associated Press.
This isn’t good at all, especially with all the fire surrounding Penn State. You hope it doesn’t affect the team or the school, but that’s a secondary issue. The main issue is whether this really happened and whether or not people knew about this.
Fine is a very well respected coach in that area and after JoePa’s legacy went in the garbage, you hope the same won’t happen here.
Not making any decision on how I feel until more information comes out.
The start of the college basketball season has me ready for marathons of games. And as soon as I put that sentence together in my head, two words stood out: Marathon and Games.
That got me to thinking of “The Game.”
The six overtime Big East Tournament game between the UConn Huskies and the Syracuse Orange.
Last season Gilchrist averaged 13 points and six rebounds a game. He is a long body at 6-foot-10. Gilchrist has battled through injuries in the past, but if he can remain healthy this guy is primed for a big season.
Once again he’ll be the focal point of the offense. He has a lot to offer on the offensive end, as he is one of the few big men with a solid mid-range jumper, which expands the defense.
4. Cleveland Melivn, sophomore F – DePaul
Photo courtesy of SUBasketball/Flickr
Melvin surprised a lot of people when he averaged 14 points per game on his way to Big East Rookie of the Year honors. Barring a sophomore slump, Melvin should have an even better season. He will be the leader of a young, but talented DePaul team.
After a year of Big East basketball under his belt, expect big things from this sophomore forward. At 6-foot-8 and 210-pounds, Melvin is tough matchup due to his size and mobility.
3. Yancy Gates, senior F – Cincinnati
Photo courtesy of Pat Strang/Flickr
The senior forward, Gates averaged 12 and seven last season for an improving Bearcats team.
Gates is a handful on offense, he can step away from the basket and shoot, although his shooting needs to improve. He can also punish defenders in the paint.
Gates may not have eye-popping numbers this year, but he could be a name you hear often, as he will be the headlining attraction to an up-and-coming Cincy team.
2. Peyton Siva, junior G – Louisville
The Louisville Cardinals point guard returns after an improved sophomore campaign. Siva averaged just under 10 points a game, dished out five assists, and recorded three rebounds a game even though he is listed at 5-foot-11.
Siva is ready for a breakout season because he crafty and strong point guard. Siva penetrates as well as any guard in the conference and is a tough defender (two steals per game 2010-2011).
He improved a lot from his freshman to sophomore year, let’s see if he can improve from sophomore year to junior year.
Wayns averaged just under 14 points per game last season to go along with four assists. But since January, Wayns really took off. In Villanova’s last 19 games, the 6-foot-2 point guard scoring in double figures 14 times.
Wayns is lightning quick and can get to the rim, but like Siva needs to improve on his shooting.
