'RAUTE' TO RECOVERY

By Zach Smart

Adversity.

We've all been dealt our fair share of it. It's about as inevitable as death and the next Britney Spears meltdown, as predictable as the next NCAA upset, and comforting as camping out in Alaska during these below freezing winter days.

No matter how hard you try, nobody gets out of life unharmed or unscathed.

Last year, Andy Rautins was physically hurt and struggling mentally. He was denied access to the sport he loves, nursing a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Rautins suffered the injury while playing in the Tournament of the Americans in Las Vegas during the summer of 2007, and his 2007-08 campaign was over before it began.

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Rautins was not the only key cog missing last year. Eric Devendorf, another staple in the backcourt, was also relegated to cheerleader. He tore a ligament in his left knee and his season was out before Big East play even kicked off.

Rautins, a quick-strike three-point sniper, showed residual effects of his one year away from the game during Cuse's first three games. Rautins hit just six of his first 24 shot attempts and continued to be the epitome of inconsistent.

The spindly shooter never let self-doubt penetrate his brain or snowball. He shouldered the shooter's mentality, telling himself to just keep shooting.

In early-season resume wins over Florida, Kansas, and Virginia Rautins connected on a combined 12 three-pointers.

Then, after being mired in a three-game 5-for-18 funk, he snapped out of it by lighting up Coppin State for 29 points, on the strength of nine treys, tying Gerry MacNamara's legendary school record for most three-pointers in a game.

He's been sizzling ever since.

Rautins scorched the nets for 26 points and seven trifectas in Syracuse's 100-76 drubbing of Seton Hall during their Big East opening.

He's hit nine threes in the past two games, wins against South Florida and DePaul.

"He's a good player, what do you want?" Said Jim Boeheim, instigating laughter in the press room following the DePaul win.

"He's out there because he's a good player, that's why he's out there. I've always thought he's a very good player, that's why I decided to start him as a sophomore."

Boeheim, who's known to blow up when the gun goes off (see "McNamara" and "overrated" on Google.com for more details), has always been defensive of his players. For Rautins, a shootist with a great basketball bloodline (his father, Leo Rautins, starred for Syracuse before playing for the Atlanta Hawks and Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA), it's no different.

"It was a really frustrating experience," said Rautins of last year. "I had a great summer though, and that definitely paid dividends."

Rautins, showed up at Big East media Day in October, sporting a dapper suit with a unique, creative undershirt. With his frame and hairdo, the kid doesn't look like a basketball player. Watch him spot up and shoot, though, you'll be hard pressed to find someone from his Jamesville, N.Y. hometown that was better.

"Obviously after a whole year, the summer helped him tremendously," said Boeheim.

"If it wasn't for the summer, he wouldn't be anywhere near where he is now. The summer really helped him. He handled the ball a lot, made a lot of plays for that (summer) team. I think he's ahead of Eric because he had that summer. But I think their both getting back, hopefully, to where they need to be."