Big East Tournament — Syracuse Powers Past Seton Hall

Ben Solomon for The New York Times

Fuquan Edwin, left, and Baye Keita battling during slumping Syracuse's win against Seton Hall in the Big East tournament's second round. More Photos »

Seconds after the opening tipoff, Jim Boeheim adopted his signature sideline posture. He folded his arms and stood in front of the Syracuse bench.

Several minutes elapsed, a stretch that featured a handful of Seton Hall 3-pointers, and Boeheim remained in the exact same spot. Finally, he sat down and rested his chin in his right palm, another Boeheim hallmark. He did not appear to be enjoying his afternoon.

It was so typical of his team, mired in a late-season swoon, that it would fall behind early to an overmatched, fatigued opponent Wednesday at Madison Square Garden. What was not so typical was fifth-seeded Syracuse's resolve, which revealed itself in a 75-63 victory in the second round of the Big East tournament.

James Southerland drained six 3-pointers and scored 20 points, and Michael Carter-Williams tied a tournament record with 14 assists as Syracuse (24-8) powered past 12th-seeded Seton Hall (15-18), which was winded after needing overtime to defeat South Florida in Tuesday's first round.

For one afternoon, at least, Boeheim's players seemed determined not to let the curtain drop on a remarkable era. For 34 years, Boeheim has been synonymous with this event, which Syracuse has won five times. He also owns the record for most coaching victories in the tournament (48), and he could add to the total against fourth-seeded Pittsburgh in Thursday's quarterfinals.

But this is also the Orange's final appearance before departing next season for the Atlantic Coast Conference, and Boeheim was in a reflective mood. He recalled sitting in the locker room before the game and thinking about what the Big East meant to him.

"Things have kind of been two years coming," he said, referring to conference realignment. "But now that it's here, your whole life has been spent in this league, and the last 31 years coming to this building — that's a lot. That's a lot of memories. A lot of time."

It has been a trying season for Boeheim, whose team arrived at the Garden in a tailspin, having lost four of its last five games, including a 61-39 drubbing by Georgetown last Saturday. All four losses had come against teams ranked in the top 25, but that did little to temper Boeheim's frustration. After the Georgetown loss — a game in which Syracuse scored its fewest points since 1962 — Boeheim told reporters that he was "pretty much ready to go golf somewhere."

His comments prompted speculation that he might be considering retirement. His employer proceeded to throw fuel on the fire when a message on Syracuse University's official Twitter account linked to a report that Boeheim would step down after the season. The university removed the post, and Boeheim dismissed it as false. After Wednesday's game, he talked about how he was looking forward to next season, in the A.C.C.

"It's a tremendous challenge, and I think that's good for me," he said. "Tired of the same old thing every year. It will be great."

This season has had its own challenges, and Seton Hall provided another one, running out to a 24-14 lead. Six of the team's first eight field goals were 3-pointers, including three from the senior guard Kyle Smyth. If the Pirates were going to beat Syracuse's vaunted zone defense, swinging the ball around the perimeter and launching outside shots was the way to do it.

Eventually, however, Southerland asserted himself. He scored 14 of Syracuse's first 21 points, and had 17 as Syracuse scrambled its way back to 34-34 by halftime. He did most of his damage from the 3-point line, where he was 5 of 7.

"I'm capable of spreading the floor," said Southerland, a senior forward.

Syracuse also got a lift from the senior guard Brandon Triche, who arrived at the Garden knee-deep in a shooting slump. Over his last five games, he had shot 15 of 52, or 28.8 percent.

But against Seton Hall, he scored three straight baskets in a pivotal second-half sequence — a 3-pointer, a 12-foot turnaround and a feathery midrange jumper. After the 3-pointer, Triche pumped his fist, an unusual show of emotion for him.

"I hadn't made a 3-pointer in like a month, so I figured I'd celebrate a little bit," he said.

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