Boeheims in a family affair at Syracuse

Brothers square off at Carrier Dome

Another season, another first for Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim. Even after more than four decades as head coach at his alma mater, he faced something new Saturday night when the Orange played host to Cornell.

The matchup gave Boeheim, 74, a unique moment in time — his two sons competed against each other on the very basketball court that bears the Hall of Fame coach’s name.

Buddy, a 6-5 freshman hit on a three-pointer as the Orange (5-2) held off Cornell (4-4) for a 63-55 win. Boeheim’s oldest son, Jimmy had 9 points and registered 6 rebounds and 4 assists for the Big Red.

A family affair like no other. “It’s a tough game, an emotional game,” Boeheim said beforehand.

Jimmy has averaged 12.2 points and 3.8 rebounds in five games as a sophmore for the Big Red this season. The 6-foot-8 sophomore forward is shooting 46.2 percent and averaging 11.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 22.1 minutes off the bench for Cornell.

Buddy has struggled for the Orange this season, hitting just 3 of 20 shots from long range and 4 of 30 overall after excelling in the preseason.

“They’ve been playing good this year, both of them,” coach Boeheim said. “Buddy hasn’t made any shots. He will. Jimmy’s been playing real good.”

The brothers were fierce competitors growing up, learning the nuances of the game both at home and at the YMCA in downtown Syracuse Saturday mornings with mom Juli watching intently while sitting on the hardwood floor against the wall of the tiny gym.

“It’s going to be a little weird, lining up against my brother,” said Jimmy, who has two 20-point games this season. “I’m going to do my best to put it aside and play to the best of my abilities.

Gonzaga

Zach Norvell Jr. got off to a slow start against Creighton for the second year in a row. Like last year, he finished with a flurry. Norvell scored 23 of his career-high 28 points in the second half, and topranked Gonzaga (8-0) wiped out an early double-digit deficit to beat host Creighton (6-2), 103-92.

Nevada

Nevada went into halftime trailing by one in front of a partisan crowd. The Wolf Pack’s seniors emerged with a different mindset. ‘’We just have to come out with that intensity, come out with that fire,’’ Jordan Caroline said. Caroline scored 22 points and No. 5 Nevada (8-0) took control with a dominant second half to beat host Southern California (5-3), 7361.

Kansas

Senior Lagerald Vick forced overtime with a 3pointer, then scored eight consecutive points to open the extra session and help the No. 2-ranked Jayhawks (6-0) to a 90-84 overtime victory against Stanford (4-4) before a crowd of 16,300 that saw Kansas erase a 12-point deficit with 12 minutes left for the victory.

Buffalo

Nick Perkins scored 22 points, Jeremy Harris added 15 with 8 rebounds and No. 21 Buffalo (7-0) held off San Francisco (7-1) for an 85-81 victory in the title game of the Basketball Hall of Fame Belfast Classic in Northern Ireland.