SYRACUSE ADVANCES TO THE FINAL FOUR AS IT'S FIRST TRIP BACK IN 10 YEARS SINCE CARMELO ANTHONY HELPED THE ORANGE WIN IT

Senior guard Brandon Triche hugs forward C.J. Fair as Syracuse advances to the NCAA Final Four.

Less than one month ago, Syracuse barely looked worthy of being in the Big East Tournament. Today, the Orange is two games from conquering college basketball.

Coach Jim Boeheim and company cut down the nets Saturday for the first time since Carmelo Anthony led the charge in 2003, grinding out a 55-39 win in the East Regional Final over No. 3 Marquette at the Verizon Center to earn a trip to the Final Four in Atlanta.

The game wasn’t pretty, with No. 4 Syracuse (30-9) shooting 38 percent from the field and 5-of-17 on 3-pointers, but the aesthetics of the post-game celebration weren’t any less amazing to the pro-Orange crowd, particularly after last year’s Elite Eight loss to Ohio State.

Marquette missed its opportunity to make its first Final Four in a decade, only briefly holding the lead on a Vander Blue 3-pointer to open the game. Syracuse didn’t score until three minutes had been played, but Michael Carter-Williams’ aggressiveness,carried over from his career-high 24-point performance in the Orange’s upset of top-seeded Indiana, and gave Syracuse its first lead, 4-3, on a drive less than four minutes in. And thus began an Orange avalanche.

The Golden Eagles (26-9) may have been familiar with the 2-3 zone of Syracuse, but the baskets looked absolutely foreign to them, hitting only 22.6 percent from the field, which included 3-of-25 on 3-pointers. Marquette didn’t force shots, but did force passes, with Syracuse’s zone creating seven early turnovers.

As Marquette opened 1-for-10 from the field, Syracuse spread the floor, with James Southerland scoring eight points in the first half with two 3-pointers. The Queens native finished with a game-high 16 points, while Carter-Williams added 12 points, 11 rebounds and five assists. Carter-Williams was named most outstanding player of the region.

With President Barack Obama watching from a luxury box, the crowd went crazy when his picture flashed on the video screen. The crowd got nearly as loud after Brandon Triche scored five straight points to give Syracuse an 18-7 lead with 7:47 left.

While Syracuse’s first-half lead hit 12, Boeheim stood on the sidelines looking like he was waiting to hear his name called to see a doctor. On the other end of the scorer’s table, Marquette coach Buzz William paced and screamed like an emergency room wouldn’t have provided urgent enough care.

The passion paid off, embodied by big man Davante Gardner, who owned Syracuse in Marquette’s regular season win. After one made shot, the junior was yelling and pounding his chest, having found room at the high post, which he repeatedly took advantage of, opening 4-of-5 from the field with nine first-half points, closing the deficit to 21-18 with just over three minutes left in the half. Then, after nearly five minutes without a point, Southerland hit a 3-pointer to give Syracuse a 24-18 halftime lead.

The second half started even uglier than the first, with the Golden Eagles making 5-of-17 from the field and the Syracuse section standing for more than five minutes since the Orange didn’t make their first field goal of the half until more than five minutes had passed.

Blue, who had made it possible for Marquette to even make it this far, was unable to shoulder the load once more, sharing a team-high 14 points with Gardner, while hitting only 3-of-15 from the field. He cut the lead to four on a 3-point play less than two minutes into the half, but the Golden Eagles wouldn’t get any closer.