Jim Boeheim frantically moved his hands and arms, calling for a timeout. Baye Keita was trapped by two defenders in a two-point game late.

Keita stayed strong with the ball, and the Syracuse center was fouled by Marquette forward Jae Crowder before the SU head coach was granted his timeout. And sure enough, the sophomore, battling a hip injury that kept him out of SU’s last game, coolly sunk both shots, extending the Syracuse lead to 61-57.

‘Baye made the two shots of the year,’ Boeheim said. ‘He hasn’t been to the foul line in probably six months, and he goes and makes two free throws.’

It hasn’t quite been six months — he got to the line Dec. 28 against Seton Hall — but the point was made. Keita is not an offensive juggernaut even when healthy. It was a question as to whether Keita would even play on Saturday after he was kept out of Wednesday’s game at Providence with a hip injury. But the center suited up and played a season-high 20 minutes in Syracuse’s 73-66 win over Marquette.

With starting center Fab Melo in foul trouble throughout the game, Keita’s ability to get on the court was paramount.

‘For him to be able to come back and play 20 minutes was crucial for us,’ SU guard Scoop Jardine said. ‘He gave us everything he’s got, and that’s the type of kid he is.’

The question of whether Keita would play was answered promptly when he hustled to the scorer’s table less than two minutes into the game. Melo picked up two quick fouls, but his backup was healthy enough to fill in the middle of the Orange’s 2-3 zone.

Keita was effective in different ways than Melo. While the starter took four charges, Keita put forth a decent all-around game: four points, five rebounds, two blocks.

‘I’m feeling good now, I’m feeling good,’ Keita said. ‘My hip was bruised last game, so I’m just getting back.’

Without Keita against Providence, freshman forward Rakeem Christmas was forced to eat minutes as Syracuse’s center. Against Marquette, Christmas played about two minutes in the middle early in the second half, but for the most part, Melo and Keita spelled each other.

Keita received crunch-time minutes, too. And that’s when he had the opportunity to knock down the big free throws. After he put SU up four with 4:34 to play, Marquette didn’t grow closer.

‘I’m going to make them,’ Keita said of his big shots. ‘Every time I step on the line, my mind is like I’m going to make them.

Triche stays hot from outside during 1st-half run

Brandon Triche wasted little time picking up where he left off.

The Syracuse guard’s hot shooting from 3-point range continued for the second straight game. After Rakeem Christmas won the opening tip for Syracuse, Triche knocked down a triple from the left wing on the Orange’s first possession.

The junior made three in a row against Providence on Wednesday to help Syracuse gain a second-half advantage. This time, he did most of his damage in the first half, scoring 13 of his 16 points as the Orange flexed its top-ranked muscles against Marquette. He was a leader on Saturday, knocking down four more treys and asserting himself defensively as well.

‘He’s making shots, that’s what he’s doing,’ SU head coach Jim Boeheim said. ‘He’s aggressive offensively, he’s looking to score.’

More often than not, Kris Joseph and Dion Waiters have knocked down the big shots or made the key plays in Syracuse’s 17-0 start. But since entering Big East play, Triche has become a player to look to as well.

Joseph came up with a steal early in the first half and tossed the ball upcourt to Triche on the fast break. The guard rose to the hoop and finished with a pretty reverse layup, putting Syracuse ahead 14-11.

Later in the first half, he delivered a viciously clever pump fake so good that Marquette guard Todd Mayo flew past him and out of bounds. His defender out of the picture, Triche buried the 3 from the right corner to extend SU’s lead to 31-12.

Yet Triche’s personal performance turned out to tell the story of Syracuse’s overall game. It was a tale of two halves. He scored just three points coming out of the locker room after the break, and they came early in the second half on his fourth trey.

Triche said Syracuse’s difficulties and lapses defensively affected the team’s offensive play, too.

‘I think when the team starts coming back we kind of look for one player to make a play,’ he said. ‘We’re not moving as much, pretty much playing together.’

mcooperj@syr.edu 

Published on January 7, 2012 at 12:00 pm

Contact Mark: mcooperj@syr.edu | @mark_cooperjr