Demetris Nichols pump faked from behind the 3-point line and Phil Goss bought it. With an open look at the basket, Nichols then rose back up to release his shot. Goss flew by him and the entire Boeheim’s Army bench stood up.

The shot — which would’ve tied the game with less than five seconds left — clanked off the back of the rim. With that, Boeheim’s Army’s quest for The Basketball Tournament’s $1 million prize came to an end in the quarterfinals. After three wins to start the tournament, the Syracuse-based team went back-and-forth with Team City of Gods for 36 minutes Saturday night but ultimately suffered an 80-76 loss in Chicago.

In all, there were 18 lead changes between Boeheim’s Army and Team City of Gods, a collection of former NBA and college players. The final lead change came with just under three minutes left, when Xavier Silas – a former Philadelphia 76er – knocked home a 3, giving City of Gods a 74-71 lead.

Roughly two minutes later, Boeheim’s Army trailed 77-73 when guard Eric Devendorf, freed by a Baye Moussa Keita screen, drove through the lane and to the rim before scoring an acrobatic layup. He was fouled and converted on the free throw to bring Boeheim’s Army within one.

Two free throws gave City of Gods a 79-76 lead with less than 30 seconds remaining, but Nichols had two opportunities to tie the game on Boeheim’s Army’s final possession.

After Keita grabbed an offensive rebound with 15 seconds to play, the big man found Nichols alone at the top of the key, a step behind the arc. Nichols’ shot missed, but City of Gods couldn’t haul in the rebound before the ball went out of bounds, and Boeheim’s Army kept possession.

Head coach Lawrence Moten called timeout and, when play resumed, it appeared as if he had drawn up a play for Devendorf. Devendorf had a decent look for 3 from the top of the key and appeared to think about taking it before dishing the ball to Nichols.

After Nichols missed another 3, City of Gods 7-footer Hamady Ndiaye grabbed the rebound with two seconds left and was fouled. He made one free throw, enough to make it a two-possession game and enough to send Boeheim’s Army home.

Published on July 25, 2015 at 10:31 pm

Contact Michael: mdburk01@syr.edu