Meet the SU Villains Roster

By now you've probably heard that Kentucky has scheduled a "Legends vs. Villains" game for October 24. First of all, that's an awesome freaking idea. It also got us thinking ... who would the Syracuse "Villains" be? Here's one blog's guess for the All-Villain team:

***Note: We tried to keep this relatively current, with the thought that these guys could still play at a reasonable level. You may really hate Steve Vacendak, but at 67 years old, he probably can't run with Jonny Flynn***

Head coach - Keith Smart
The skinny - Sure, you could go with Bobby Knight here, but Smart has to be Villain No. 1 for SU. He probably couldn't lace them up anymore, so considering his NBA coaching experience with the Warriors, he can lead this squad.
Villain Moment - Let's never discuss this one again.

Assistant coach - Patrick Ewing
The skinny - Never got a chance to be a head coach in the NBA. Doesn't get the chance here. Always the bridesmaid, huh Patrick?
Villain Moment - Going to Georgetown. General douchebaggery.

Starting Lineup

G - T.J. Sorrentine (Vermont)
The skinny - 17 points in Vermont's shocking 13/4 upset over SU in the 2004 NCAA Tourney. Has no respect for laws of gravity or "range" on 3-pointers.
Villain Moment - This ...




G - Ray Allen (UConn)
The skinny - Scored 29 points in a Big East Tourney game against Syracuse - allegedly.
Villain Moment - Hey, if Nike says it happened, it must be true.




F - Gordon Hayward (Butler)
The skinny - Losing to a bunch of white guys is actually more annoying. I don't care if that's racist. It's true.
Villain moment - 17 points, 5 rebounds, 7-8 from the FT line. 10,000,000 remote tosses by Syracuse fans during Butler's 2010 NCAA Tournament upset victory.

F - Blake Griffin (Oklahoma)
The skinny - Basically the only person in America who could match Jonny Flynn's effort in 2009. Griffin also had the supporting cast and more natural ability and size. Even though it was just one game, and a bit of a blowout, we need a headliner for this imaginary game, and Griffin is it.
Villain moment - 30 points, 14 rebounds in Sweet 16 victory ... and this:



C - Joshhilton Boonestrong (UConn)
The skinny - The twin towers for UConn, Josh Boone and Hilton Armstrong, were always lurking, waiting to block ill-advised layups from the smaller Syracuse players.
Villain moment - Winning four out of five regular season matchups with the Orange. Getting into the Syracuse shooters' heads and making them afraid to pull the trigger for three years.

Off the Bench

G - Curtis Blair (Richmond)
-18 points, 6 assists in the first-ever 15-seed upset in the NCAA Tournament in 1991
G - Tony Delk (Kentucky)
-24 points in the National Championship game in 1996 for Kentucky. Connected on seven 3-pointers.
G - Allen Iverson (Georgetown)
-The token Hoya on this list only went 2-2 in his career against SU. But he did average 21.5 PPG in those four games.
G - Karlvance Krausefields (Pittsburgh)
-Ever wonder why Pitt has dominated SU for so long? Well, Krauser averaged 17 PPG in two wins in 2005, and followed it up with 32 points in the only regular season matchup in 2006. Fields averaged 17.3 PPG from 2007-09.
G - Scottie Reynolds (Villanova)
-Is he still playing for 'Nova? Scored 22 points to knock the Orange out of the BET in 2008, ending any NCAA Tournament hopes.
F - Donyell Marshall (UConn)
-Put up 20 points and 11 rebounds in a 1994 win against SU. More importantly, was Calhoun's first All-American, and started pushing the Huskies towards Syracuse's level.
F - Luke Harangody (Notre Dame)
-Scored 1,000,000 points and pulled down 700,000 rebounds (approximate) in four-year career against SU. Helped ND rack up 103 points in a game in 2007.

Suspended
G - Doug Gottleib (Notre Dame/Oklahoma State)
-Gottleib was originally on the roster for how much he annoyed SU fans after his playing days ended. However, after investigators found some "borrowed" property in his ESPN office, he was declared ineligible for the game.

Referees
Tim Higgins
Jim Burr

What do you think? Who did we miss? Let us know in the comment section.

H/T @zamalkany for a lot of the research and selection duties. Pin It Now!