All eyes were on James Southerland during Syracuse’s pregame routine Sunday. The senior was back on the floor, getting loose with his carefree windmill dunks and half-court shots, just as he had before missing the previous six games.

The buzz continued to build until the opening tip, when Southerland took a seat between head coach Jim Boeheim and assistant coach Adrian Autry. His No. 43 jersey was on and visible – no need to bother with the team’s long-sleeve orange warm-ups – and he was ready to go.

His presence meant Syracuse had some depth again.

“It gives us an eighth guy,” Boeheim said. “Seven guys is really not enough. You can get by with seven, but if you have foul problems or you get in a fast-paced game, you need that extra guy.”

That extra guy also changes the dynamic of a Syracuse team that already sits alone atop the Big East. The Orange won four of its six games without Southerland – largely due to the emergence of freshman forward Jerami Grant as an aggressive playmaker – but it’s a different team with its shooter on the court. His effect was on display in a 19-point win over St. John’s on Sunday.

He and his teammates will look to continue to roll through conference play when Syracuse (20-3, 8-2 Big East) takes on Connecticut (16-6, 6-4) at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn., on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

With Southerland back in the fold and Grant playing at a high level, SU suddenly has two 6-foot-8 threats on the wing who can stand tall in the team’s 2-3 zone. 

“It’s a very dangerous team, especially him being the threat he is and then Jerami,” forward C.J. Fair said. “He stepped up while James was gone so Jerami just got to be ready.

“Overall, I think our team is very deep.” 

Thirteen days earlier, Syracuse’s deep roster was suddenly thin when it was announced that freshman center DaJuan Coleman would miss four weeks after undergoing knee surgery.

Boeheim’s rotation was cut to seven players. Foul trouble became a concern, and the scoring load fell on Fair, Brandon Triche and Michael Carter-Williams. An off game by one jeopardized SU’s chances of winning.

But with Southerland back, those problems disappear.

Rakeem Christmas picked up his fourth foul less than three minutes into the second half against St. John’s and sat for the next 15-plus minutes. It didn’t matter.

Southerland hit three 3-pointers and scored 11 points in the final 20 minutes. Triche, Carter-Williams and Fair all could score with less pressure.

Though Southerland’s return was seamless on Sunday, Boeheim said chemistry on the floor still needs to develop.

“It’s going to change, it’s different, it takes time to get used to it,” Boeheim said. “There’s no knowing or no way of figuring out how it’s going to work when you don’t play in games.”

Grant averaged 9.8 points and played 33.2 minutes per game while Southerland was out. He played all 40 minutes in Syracuse’s games against Pittsburgh and Notre Dame, but the freshman saw his time drop to 15 minutes against St. John’s.

Boeheim said the slow pace of the game meant Fair could handle 39 minutes, and the need for a 3-point threat against SJU’s zone led to more minutes for Southerland.

Still, the head coach said Grant is a crucial part of SU’s lineup moving forward, and the freshman is staying positive after gaining plenty of confidence and proving his value during a tough six-game stretch of Big East play.

“I’m fine with that,” Grant said. “As long as our team wins, that’s all that matters.”

For Boeheim, the stretch run of Big East play isn’t quite as daunting now. Foul trouble can easily be overcome. There is enough depth at each position.

With that extra guy back in rotation, Boeheim’s worries for the last two weeks are gone.

“With three forwards and three guards, and we have two centers so if we get in foul trouble we can keep them in there,” Boeheim said Sunday. “They did get in foul trouble today, but they did a good job inside.

“But eight’s fine.”

Published on February 13, 2013 at 1:21 am

Contact Ryne: rjgery@syr.edu