SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim is ready for life after Andy Rautins, Arinze Onuaku, and Wes Johnson.
The nucleus of last year’s team is gone, but four promising freshmen have jumped on board to complement four veterans — guard Scoop Jardine, forward Rick Jackson, swingman Kris Joseph, and guard Brandon Triche, who started all 35 games last season as a freshman.
Boeheim says they have to be the nucleus this year and be leaders for one of the top freshman classes in the nation. Newcomers include C.J. Fair, a 6-8 forward from Baltimore; Baye Moussa Keita, a 6-10 forward and native of Senegal who played for Oak Hill Academy (Va.); Dion Waiters, a 6-3 shooting guard from Philadelphia; and 7-foot, 267-pound center Fab Melo, a native of Brazil who attended Sagemont High School in Florida.
Melo likely will play a bigger role than he might have imagined. Boeheim announced that 7-foot center DaShonte Riley will have surgery to correct a stress fracture in his right foot and likely won’t play.
