Carmelo Returns to the Carrier Dome This Fall…After All!

Syracuse, NY (August 9, 2003) -- Final Four hero Carmelo Anthony will make a return to the Carrier Dome in a different uniform – this time in a NBA jersey as a member of the Denver Nuggets. Carl Scheer, Chairman and CEO of SCHEER EVENTS and former Nuggets general manager, has announced plans for a NBA Pre-Season game between the Detroit Pistons and the Denver Nuggets.

The game will be played at the Carrier Dome on the campus of Syracuse University, on Sunday, October 19, 2003. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.

The Denver Nuggets feature the play of rookie sensation Carmelo Anthony, the former freshman leader of the 2003 NCAA Men’s Basketball National Champion Syracuse Orangemen. This will be the first professional appearance in Syracuse for the 2003 3rd overall NBA draft pick. The game will also feature the Syracuse debut of future NBA Hall of Fame Coach and current Pistons head coach Larry Brown, along with Darko Milicic, the 2nd overall pick in the 2003 NBA draft.

“I can’t wait to play in the Carrier Dome again in front of the greatest fans in the country,” Anthony said. “I was only there one year, but it was one of the greatest years of my life. To play in front of 30,000 fans and win a National Championship was a dream come true for me.”

In only one season, Anthony led the Syracuse Orangemen to the 2003 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship, scoring 22.2 ppg, including 26.5 points and 12 rebounds per game against Texas and Kansas in the Final Four. Anthony was named the NCAA East Regional MVP, Basketball Times Freshman of the Year, USBWA Freshman of the Year, and received the 2003 ESPY for Best Male College Athlete. Anthony is the 28th player drafted by the NBA during head coach Jim Boeheim’s 27 seasons at Syracuse.

“We are excited and proud to be able to bring the Denver Nuggets and Detroit Pistons to the Carrier Dome,” stated Scheer. “The opportunity for the loyal Syracuse fans to see Carmelo Anthony in an NBA uniform just seven months after the exciting National Championship victory, makes this a must-see event. Also, the chance to witness the debut of one of the greatest coaches in basketball history, in Larry Brown, adds a huge attraction for basketball fans everywhere. We could not have asked for a better match-up, and a more hospitable host in the Carrier Dome and our friends with Syracuse University.”

“This is a unique and memorable opportunity for Carmelo and the Syracuse fans to show their mutual affection and appreciation one more time,” said co-promoter Chris Cordes, who in the past has engineered the NBA return to the Syracuse of former SU players Pearl Washington, Rony Seikaly, Derrick Coleman and Sherman Douglas.

The game will be played in the Carrier Dome less than 24 hours after the Syracuse Orangemen take on Boston College in an intense Big East homecoming rivalry, with thousands of alumni in town for 2003 Homecoming festivities.

NBA tickets are priced at: $17.50, $27.50, $37.50 ($25 for SU students), and $100 (VIP courtside seating), and go on sale Saturday, August 16th, at 10:00AM at the Carrier Dome and at all Ticketmaster outlets, on-line at Ticketmaster.com, or by Ticketmaster Charge-by-Phone. If you live in the following areas, call the appropriate local Ticketmaster phone numbers:

Syracuse (315) 472-0700
Rochester (585) 232-1900
Buffalo (716) 852-5000
Albany (518)476-1000
Binghamton (607)722-7272
Elmira (607)722-3711

Syracuse University students will be able to purchase discounted lower level tickets for $25 in the normal behind-the-basket SU Student seating area.