Boeheim to coach after fatal crash

SYRACUSE, N.Y. >> Jim Boeheim has faced his share of obstacles in his long career at Syracuse, none like the one the Hall of Fame coach faces now. When top-ranked Duke comes to town on Saturday evening for a much-anticipated rematch against the Orange, Boeheim will be dealing with many emotions. It’s the team’s first game since he struck and killed a pedestrian on a dark highway after guiding the Orange to a victory over No. 18 Louisville on Wednesday night. Doubts about whether Boeheim might miss the game were dispelled Friday when Syracuse athletic director John Wildhack announced that the 74-yearold Boeheim would be on the sideline. “Our community is shaken. The Boeheim family is heartbroken over what happened, as we all are. This is a very difficult time,” Wildhack said in a news release. “I know that Coach Boeheim’s players gain strength from him, just as he gains strength from his players. Our entire community gains strength from each other.” The accident happened on a dark stretch of Interstate 690 in Syracuse. Police say 51-year-old Jorge Jimenez was a passenger in a car that apparently skidded out of control on a patch of ice and hit a guardrail. Police say Jimenez was trying to get to safety when he was struck by Boeheim’s SUV. Boeheim had swerved to avoid the disabled car, which was resting perpendicular across two lanes. Jimenez was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Another man in the car suffered minor injuries. Police said Boeheim has been cooperating and used the light on his cellphone to warn other drivers of the disabled car after the accident. Sobriety tests administered to Boeheim and the unidentified driver of the other vehicle were negative for any signs of impairment, according to authorities. No tickets have been issued and the investigation is continuing. Police Chief Kenton T. Buckner said Thursday evening at a news conference there was “no reason to believe that there are criminal charges that will be coming for anyone.” Boeheim addressed the team on Thursday but did not take part in practice. “He’s just very down,” family friend Adam Weitsman said Friday. “He’s taking it really hard.” Boeheim has been head coach at Syracuse, his alma mater, since 1976 and is one of the most accomplished coaches in the country. He ranks second all-time in wins in Division I with 944, behind only Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski. In the past three decades, Boeheim has dealt with prostate cancer, the death of his best friend to esophageal cancer, two NCAA investigations and a scandal involving former assistant coach Bernie Fine, who was accused of molesting two ball boys but never charged.

CARLOS OSORIO — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim watches during a practice. Police say Syracuse men’s basketball coach Jim Boeheim struck and killed a 51-year-old man walking outside his vehicle on a highway near Syracuse, N.Y., on Feb. 20.