Richard Duffy, former Jim Boeheim, Dave Bing teammate, dies at 80

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Richard Duffy, a former teammate of Jim Boeheim and Dave Bing, died last Thursday at the age of 80. He hosted the former Hall of Fame head coach on his visit to Syracuse’s campus and was the first person Boeheim met when he got to campus, Boeheim told syracuse.com Monday.

A native of Katonah, New York, Duffy attended John Jay High School and played for three seasons with the varsity team under head coach Fred Lewis. He helped the Orange return to the postseason for the first time since 1956-57 with a berth in the National Invitational Tournament in 1963-64. Known for his playmaking skills, good ball handling and quickness, Duffy was a career 45.5% field goal shooter before the implementation of the 3-point line.

According to orangehoops.org, Lewis wanted to play an up-tempo style of play and despite getting benched midway through his sophomore season, Duffy fit the mold. He averaged 8.6 points per game in his final season. In his first season with Syracuse, he helped turn around a team that had gone 2-22 in 1961-62 into an eight-win team. After Lewis brought in Boeheim and Bing, the Orange won 17 games with Duffy as the starting point guard.

Duffy graduated and began his career in advertising, where he represented major companies such as Rolex and MasterCard. He is survived by his wife, Karen, who lives in Southport, North Carolina.