Each week over the summer, The Juice Online will be counting down the top 15 players in Syracuse basketball history. John Wallace is No. 8 on our list.
WHY HE’S NO. 8: Wallace was a dominant power forward who left The Hill as the school’s No. 3 all time scorer. As a junior, Wallace averaged 16.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game, playing alongside Lawrence Moten and Luke Jackson. Surprising some, Wallace returned for his senior season, and averaged 22.2 points a game. In the third round of the NCAA tournament, Wallace made two plays that are among the most memorable in SU history. With time winding down in regulation, Wallace found Jason Cipolla for a game-tying shot to force overtime. In the extra frame, Syracuse trailed by a single point as Wallace took the ball all the way down the floor on his own and drained a 3-pointer with seven seconds left, allowing the Orangemen to advance. But Wallace’s 29 points and 10 rebounds in the championship game were not enough as a loaded Kentucky team went on to win.
» Carmelo Anthony is our No. 9 All Time SU basketball player
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AFTER SYRACUSE: Projected as a lottery pick, Wallace slipped all the way to the 18th pick before he was drafted by the New York Knicks. He had an underwhelming career in the NBA, playing for five teams in seven seasons before playing overseas in Greece and Italy. Wallace also appeared in the movie “He Got Game” alongside Ray Allen and Denzel Washington in 1998.
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