This Syracuse team deserves more credit than it will receive. Sure, a seven-point home win against NIT-bound Providence is not impressive on paper. Not at all.

But in case you somehow missed it, Syracuse played six scholarship players Sunday. That’s all.

Freshmen Jonny Flynn and Donte Greene played the entire game. Arinze Onuaku logged 39 minutes and walked out of the locker room with two iced knees. The bench consisted of freshman Rick Jackson and walk-on Justin Thomas. An ill Paul Harris played 37 minutes, prompting a Jim Boeheim quip: ‘I told him he can feel bad tomorrow.’

Still, Boeheim was mostly brash, as usual, in his post-game press conference. He immediately cut this reporter off when asking a follow-up question about Scoop Jardine’s indefinite suspension. He admitted things would be difficult from here on out. He criticized the team’s turnovers.

But then, out of nowhere, Boeheim became John Wooden. Facing the most calamitous coaching situation his entire career, the 63-year-old coach got philosophical.

‘There’s a lot of adversity in life,’ Boeheim said. ‘There are a lot of things that don’t go the way you want to. We haven’t had a starter missing significant games in probably the 32 years I’ve been here. And to lose, you know, three starters is hard to do. But you just play through it and do the best you can every time out.’

After Sunday, this much is certain: Boeheim can be proud of his team, even if he doesn’t openly admit it. Even if SU looked mind-bogglingly disoriented on offense.

The star Greene, who made the key 3-pointer to give Syracuse the lead for good, said the head coach’s locker room speech to his players was no different.

”We need to cut down on turnovers,” Greene recalled Boeheim saying. ‘He gave us our negatives, but he gave us our positives. We just have to take it in stride.’

Sure, it was by no means a game they’ll ever consider airing on ESPN Classic. Both halfcourt offenses looked completely lost, and there was no flow to the game whatsoever.

Of course, Syracuse will take the win. Nothing comes easy these days, and that trend will undoubtedly continue for the final 10 games plus whatever postseason, if any, Syracuse plays.

And as sloppy as the Orange may be, the last two games have said a lot about the core of this team – however many players it is.

They’re gritty.

The shorthanded Orange had No. 9 Georgetown on the ropes with four minutes left and couldn’t close it out last Monday. The lesson was learned Sunday – with even one less starter – when Providence stormed back from 12 points down to tie the game at 56 with 4:38 left, but Syracuse prevailed after the Greene 3-pointer and made its free throws down the stretch.

Greene said he talked with Flynn before the game to emphasize the importance of the contest. Probably a good idea, considering had the Orange lost at home to the Friars, those faint NCAA dreams could be kissed goodbye.

‘Up to this point, we felt like this game here was our biggest game of the season,’ Flynn said. ‘This could put us way at the bottom of the Big East if we lose this game, but with a win, we’d still be right around there, in the middle of the pack. … By any means necessary, we had to get this win.’

Obviously the Orange, which now sits in 10th place in the Big East, barely on the edge of making the conference tournament, let alone the NCAA Tournament, is a long shot to end up happy on Selection Sunday. Just consider the depth.

Greene said the last time he played on a team this small was elementary school. And that team would play with four players when Greene fouled out.

Boeheim can’t bring anyone new in. Sean Williams, the freshman project, isn’t ready. Luckily for Boeheim, the walk-on Thomas knows the system and can chew up some minutes.

When players are tired, they’re going to have to keep playing. And playing.

‘We’re going to have to play through it,’ Greene said. ‘We’re going to have to suck it up. That’s what the game is all about.’

Boeheim had the wherewithal to say his six-man team will keep running. That’s what the kids want.

Now we’ll see how long they can keep up.

Matt Gelb is the sports editor at The Daily Orange, where his columns appear occasionally. He can be reached at magelb@gmail.com.

Published on January 27, 2008 at 12:00 pm