Jonny Flynn sat on a stool in front of his locker, surrounded on three sides by members of the media after Syracuse’s 98-94 win over Georgetown. Flynn’s former running mate, Donte Greene, was in the locker room and tossed an ‘Orange Out’ T-shirt over the horde of people, surprising Flynn while he was attempting to answer a question.

Last year, the Orange relied on the duo for most of the season to pilot Syracuse. This year Greene is gone, but Syracuse’s reliance on two players didn’t leave with him. Junior Eric Devendorf has partnered up with Flynn to yield the load of expectations that the 6-foot guard had to carry into the season.

‘Eric has the confidence about himself that shares off on me,’ Flynn said. ‘He feels like it’s him against the world. And nobody can stop him. When he’s out there like that, it gets me fired up and gets me going.’

The reliance was highlighted Saturday afternoon. Throughout the first half, it looked as if SU finally had a healthy Arinze Onuaku and Andy Rautins back. The backcourt tandem of Flynn and Devendorf combined for just seven points.

The two shot a combined 2-for-8 from the field and 0-of-4 from deep. But even with the low output, Syracuse still had a one-point lead heading into the locker room. As Georgetown edged closer and the clock continued to progress to triple zero, it was no surprise that Devendorf and Flynn hoisted the Orange on their back and began to take over the game.

After halftime, 41 of the 65 points the Orange scored came from its dynamic backcourt duo, which equates to 63 percent of the offense. Even more impressive was how they put up the 41 points. Flynn and Devendorf attempted only 19 shots (making 13 for a 68 percent clip) in the final 25 minutes of the game.

More specifically, in overtime, when Georgetown was playing with house money and Syracuse was playing in a game that never should have reached OT, Devendorf and Flynn were perfect.

In the most important five minutes of the season, the tandem scored 14 of SU’s 15 points, while shooting 4-for-4 from the field and 4-for-4 from the line. Devendorf netted two 3’s, one of which head coach Jim Boeheim called a ‘do-or-die shot.’ Boeheim put the ball in Devendorf’s hand to begin the extra period, then gave it to him again as SU trailed by one.

‘It was important for us to come out,’ Boeheim said. ‘I think they scored right off the bat. Then they took the lead and that’s why that shot by Eric was really probably the key. Making that shot was … that was a big, big play.’

It’s what Devendorf has done all year. And while he was draining 3’s, Flynn continued to produce like he has all year, dishing the ball on those trifectas. And SU’s point guard iced the game, converting from the line.

‘You look at some of the players that are player of the year candidates, and if you take Jonny Flynn off of this team, it would be hard to say who we would beat because of what he brings to the team,’ SU forward Paul Harris said. ‘He brings so much. He means so much to this team.’

Over the last six games, Flynn has averaged 22 points. Devendorf’s not far behind at 20 points per game. As for the Orange’s next leading scorer, Harris checked in at nine points.

The only threat now is the two of them meaning too much. The guards can only carry the team so far, just like ‘The Donte Greene & Jonny Flynn Show’ was cancelled and relegated to an NIT appearance. And despite the great play this season, the Flynn and Devendorf show can only have so many episodes, as SU is only 3-6 in its last nine games.

When the Orange was firing on all cylinders, five to six players were scoring in double figures. Onuaku and Rautins took steps Saturday in getting SU back on that path again with 15 and 13 points, respectively.

But until their teammates can consistently produce, the Orange is in good hands. And even though Devendorf isn’t as big a name as Greene, he’s a perfect running mate. So much so that this year’s edition of Syracuse’s two-headed monster may end up better than last year’s.

‘Our guard play is tremendous,’ Flynn said. ‘I don’t think there are any guards in the conference when we’re going and rolling like we are, I don’t think anybody can stop us in this conference or even the country.’

After the past couple of games, who could argue with you, Jonny?

Michael Bonner is a staff writer for The Daily Orange, where his columns appear occasionally. He can be reached at mibonner@syr.edu.

Published on February 15, 2009 at 12:00 pm