Editor’s note: The article below is a republished story from The Daily Orange’s Jan. 22, 1990 edition. Then-editor Rob Guyette wrote it on Syracuse’s last-second loss to Providence in the Carrier Dome two days before. A shortened version of the story has been republished for space considerations. The photos appear as they were printed in 1990.

This game was based on a true story.

The names and places have been changed, but not to protect the innocent. Some, in fact, are very guilty.

And these people are not actors. They are the actual people whose actions on the night of January 20, 1990, decided the outcome of this game.

The setting — The Carrier Dome, a place where SU had won 26 of its last 28 games.

The goat — Dave Johnson, who missed the free throw with 33 seconds left and the Orange leading by one 86-85.

The coach — Rick Barnes, who elected not to call a time-out to set up the final play.

The hero — Eric Murdock, who hit the game-winning jump shot with three seconds left and stayed the hero when Richard Manning missed a five-foot jump shot at the buzzer.

The SuperDome, Derrick Coleman, Bobby Knight and Keith Smart wrote this story for the first time, at the 1987 NCAA Championship game. And while Saturday’s game may not have had the implications of its predecessor, the Friars put on a national championship-like celebration after they ended SU’s 21-game dominance of the series with the 87-86 win before 32, 401 at Dome.

Providence, 11-4 overall and 4-2 Big East, had not beaten Syracuse, 12-3 and 3-3, since Big East play began in 1979, a streak which included a 77-63 Orange win in the 1987 national semifinal, two days before the Hoosier heartbreak.

“Obviously it’s a great win for our program,” PC coach Rick Barnes said. “We just did what we had to do and I’ll tell you, we deserved this win because God knows how many games we’ve lost like this.”

The Friars first three losses this season were by a total of four points.

“It’s a very special win,” Murdock said. “Coming in here and doing it for the first time makes it even better.”

After Johnson’s miss, the Friars made it clear they were going to hold the ball for one final shot. Point guard Calton Screen dribbled uncontested on the left sidelines 25 feet away from the basket as the clock ticked down into single digits.
With eight seconds left, Screen headed right and found Murdock coming off a Marty Conlon screen. Murdock took the ball 20 feet from the basket, hesitated, faked, drove, pulled up at the foul line, and drilled the 15-footer.

“We don’t call time-outs in that situation,” Murdock said. “The clock got down to like 10 seconds and we had to get into it. I just came off the pick and three guys came after me. (The play) is designed to get either Marty Conlon on the blocks or me off the double screen.

“I was going to go for three but I pump faked and moved in for the basket. It worked well.”

Published on January 23, 2015 at 2:34 am