March 12, 2009. New York City. Madison Square Garden. If you’re a Big East fan, those details aren't just a date and a place; they are the coordinates for the most exhausting, ridiculous, and legendary basketball game ever played. The Syracuse Connecticut 6 OT game wasn't just a quarterfinal matchup in a conference tournament. It was a war of attrition that lasted nearly four hours and didn’t end until 1:22 AM on a Friday morning.
Think about that for a second. Most games are over in two hours. This one went so long that the "late" news had already finished, and the cleaning crews at the Garden were probably wondering if they should just start prepping for the morning session while the game was still going.
What Actually Happened During the Syracuse Connecticut 6 OT?
Basically, nobody could pull away. Or, more accurately, every time someone did pull away, the other team found some absurd way to claw back. It’s the kind of game that shouldn't exist in modern sports because usually, someone misses a free throw or trips over their own feet. But for 65 minutes of game time, these two teams just refused to die.
Syracuse eventually won 127–117. But the score is almost the least interesting part of the story.
The most "Big East" thing about this game was that Syracuse led for zero seconds of the first five overtimes. Zero. They were constantly chasing, constantly on the brink of elimination, and somehow, they kept the lights on. Jonny Flynn played 67 out of 70 possible minutes. Imagine running full sprint for over an hour while 20,000 people scream at you. Most of us get winded walking up a flight of stairs with groceries.
The Box Score That Looks Like a Typo
If you look at the stats from the Syracuse Connecticut 6 OT thriller, they look like something a kid would make up in a video game. Eight players fouled out. Six from UConn, two from Syracuse. By the end, Jim Calhoun and Jim Boeheim were basically looking at the end of their benches asking guys who usually just hand out Gatorade to go guard future NBA draft picks.
A.J. Price and Kemba Walker were out there for UConn, while Flynn and Paul Harris were doing the heavy lifting for the Orange. It was a weird, beautiful mess.
- Jonny Flynn: 34 points, 11 assists, 67 minutes.
- Paul Harris: 29 points, 22 rebounds (yes, 22).
- A.J. Price: 33 points, 10 assists.
- Hasheem Thabeet: 19 points, 14 rebounds, 6 blocks.
The most insane stat? Syracuse didn't hit a single three-pointer in the first half. They stayed in it through pure grit and foul shots. They shot 51 free throws. UConn shot 42. That’s nearly 100 free throws in a single game. It’s a miracle the referees’ whistles didn’t melt.
The Moment It Should Have Ended (But Didn’t)
Everyone remembers the Eric Devendorf shot. At the end of regulation, Devendorf hit a massive three, jumped up on the scorer’s table, and celebrated like he’d just won the national championship. He thought it was over. The fans thought it was over. Jim Boeheim probably thought it was over.
But the refs went to the monitor. This was back when replay was still relatively "new" in terms of how it influenced late-game drama.
The ball was still on his fingertips. No basket.
The Garden went from a literal explosion of noise to a weird, confused silence. That moment shifted the energy of the entire night. It turned a classic game into a marathon. Instead of Syracuse celebrating in the locker room, they had to trudge back out for five more periods of basketball.
The Fatigue Factor: How Do You Play 70 Minutes?
Honestly, you don't. Not well, anyway. By the fourth and fifth overtimes, the quality of basketball started to dip into "zombie mode." Players were literally leaning on each other during free throws just to stay upright.
There’s a famous story about the Syracuse locker room during the breaks between overtimes. They weren’t talking about X’s and O’s or drawing up complex pick-and-roll coverage. They were eating fruit, drinking anything with electrolytes, and trying to keep their legs from cramping into knots.
UConn was the #3 team in the country at the time. Syracuse was #18. On paper, UConn’s depth should have won them the game. But they kept losing bodies. Jeff Adrien, Hasheem Thabeet, Gavin Edwards—they all fouled out. When you lose a 7-foot-3 defensive monster like Thabeet, the rim suddenly looks a lot bigger.
Why the Big East Tournament Was Different
You have to understand the context of 2009. The Big East was the undisputed king of college basketball. That year, the league sent three teams to the Elite Eight. It was a gauntlet. The tournament at Madison Square Garden was more prestigious than the actual NCAA tournament for a lot of these guys.
Winning the Syracuse Connecticut 6 OT game became a badge of honor that transcended the trophy. It was about who had the most "want to."
Andy Rautins, who played 52 minutes, finally hit a big three in the sixth overtime that felt like the dagger. It was the first time Syracuse actually felt like they were in control. When the buzzer finally sounded, there wasn't even a huge celebration. It was more like a collective sigh of relief. They were too tired to jump.
The Aftermath: What People Forget
Syracuse had to play again the next night. That’s the truly cruel part of tournament basketball. After finishing a six-overtime game at 1:30 AM, they had to turn around and play West Virginia in the semifinals.
And they won.
They eventually lost to Louisville in the title game, but the 6 OT game remains the defining moment of that era. It changed how we think about endurance in sports. It also sparked endless debates about whether the "Devendorf Shot" should have counted (it shouldn't have, the refs got it right, but it's still fun to argue about).
Lessons from the Marathon
If you're a coach or an athlete looking back at this game, there are actually some pretty practical takeaways, despite how chaotic it was.
- Conditioning is a floor, not a ceiling. Jonny Flynn wasn't the most talented player on the court that night, but he was the best conditioned. Being able to maintain focus when your lungs are burning is what separates "good" from "legendary."
- Next-man-up isn't a cliché. Syracuse won because their bench players, like Justin Thomas, came in and provided minutes that didn't show up in the box score but kept the starters from collapsing.
- The mental reset. Every time an overtime ended in a tie, both teams had to mentally discard the last five minutes and start fresh. If you carry the frustration of a missed game-winner into the next period, you lose.
How to Experience the Game Today
If you’ve never seen it, or if you only saw the highlights, you should actually go back and watch the full second half and overtimes. You can find most of it on YouTube or through ESPN’s archives. Look at the faces of the fans in the front row. By the fifth overtime, they look as exhausted as the players.
It’s a reminder that sports are at their best when they become unpredictable. You can't script a six-overtime game. You can't fake the sheer desperation of a player like Paul Harris grabbing his 22nd rebound.
The Syracuse Connecticut 6 OT game stands as a monument to the old Big East. It was physical, it was long, it was slightly ugly, and it was absolutely impossible to turn off.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Students of the Game
- Analyze the "Short Rotation" Strategy: Study how Jim Boeheim managed his timeouts in the 4th and 5th overtimes. He stopped coaching "plays" and started coaching "energy."
- Recovery Matters: If you're an athlete, look at the recovery protocols Syracuse used that night to play again less than 20 hours later. It involved immediate hydration and ice baths in the middle of the night.
- Appreciate the Rules: This game is a prime example of why foul management is the most underrated skill in basketball. UConn didn't lose because they were less talented; they lost because their best players were sitting on the bench in suits for the final ten minutes.
The next time a game goes into a single overtime and you feel stressed, just remember the kids in 2009 who had to do it six times over. They survived it, and they created a piece of history that will never be topped in the World’s Most Famous Arena.