Fans that attend Midnight Madness will be treated to a ‘once in a lifetime’ experience, as Ed Levine put it. Many former Syracuse basketball stars — including four NBA players dealing with the league’s lockout — will return to take part in a ‘Legends’ scrimmage during the event.

‘The saying ‘once in a lifetime’ gets tossed around a lot nowadays, but this truly may be a once in a lifetime,’ said Levine, CEO of Galaxy Communications, ‘when you’re seeing some of these players while they’re still active right in the middle of their NBA careers.’

The ‘Legends’ scrimmage adds a unique component to this year’s Midnight Madness, which will take place Friday at 8 p.m. in the Carrier Dome. The event will also include scrimmages and drills by the current men’s and women’s basketball teams. Rapper Meek Mill will be the featured entertainment for the night.

The event is free to the public. Students can pick up tickets with a valid Syracuse University ID at the Schine Student Center. An autograph and photo session with the players will take place from 7-8 p.m. Levine said the scrimmage will likely take place at about 8:30 p.m.

The collection of former players will be divided into two teams and participate in a 10-minute scrimmage. Gerry McNamara, Hakim Warrick, Wes Johnson, Jonny Flynn, John Wallace and Roosevelt Bouie are just a few of the players that will participate. Derrick Coleman, Pearl Washington, Mike Hopkins and Billy Owens will serve as honorary coaches.

Levine said the event will showcase the proud history of Syracuse basketball.

‘This is an elite program,’ Levine said. ‘This is a top-five program, and I don’t think we stick out our chest enough sometimes and say Syracuse University basketball is as big as it gets. There is none bigger, and I think this night will prove that.’

The event was a collaborative idea of everyone involved in the event, including men’s basketball head coach Jim Boeheim, Levine said.

Levine could not definitively say whether or not Carmelo Anthony would be in attendance, but said he expects Anthony to be there. Levine said the event has received a positive response from former players and more players could get involved.

‘You’re going to see family through the generations,’ Levine said. ‘Rosie Bouie representing the ‘70s, Derrick Coleman representing the ‘80s, John Wallace representing the ‘90s, Gerry McNamara representing the 2000s. It’s almost 40 years of Syracuse basketball will be represented on that court on Friday night.’

adtredin@syr.edu

Published on October 12, 2011 at 12:00 pm