Jim Boeheim will coach on Saturday after hitting and killing a Syracuse man in a fatal car crash Wednesday night following his team’s win over Louisville, SU Athletics Director John Wildhack announced in a statement Friday. Boeheim in a previously released statement Thursday said he’s “heartbroken” over the crash.

Wildhack’s statement reads, in full:

“The Jimenez family has suffered a tremendous loss. Our community is shaken. The Boeheim family is heartbroken over what happened, as we all are. This is a very difficult time. I know that Coach Boeheim’s players gain strength from him, just as he gains strength from his players. Our entire community gains strength from each other. With this in mind, and after thoughtful consideration, I have respectfully decided that Coach Boeheim will resume his coaching duties later today and will coach in tomorrow night’s game against Duke. We continue to extend our deepest sympathies to the Jimenez family as they continue to mourn this tragic loss.”

Syracuse (18-8, 9-4 Atlantic Coast) hosts No. 1 Duke (23-3, 11-2) at 6 p.m. on Saturday. Boeheim’s friend Adam Weitsman said Thursday that he anticipated Orange assistant Gerry McNamara to fill in the head role at practice Thursday after Boeheim spoke with his team.

The Carrier Dome’s basketball attendance record is expected to be broken for Saturday’s game, with eight more seats exceeding the mark set against Duke in 2014. ESPN’s College GameDay was slated to be in attendance, but instead announced late Thursday that it would hold the show in a studio in Bristol, Connecticut.

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MORE COVERAGE: 

• Jim Boeheim hits, kills man in I-690 crash
• Audio: Dispatcher outlines Jim Boeheim crash scene 
• ESPN’s College Gameday will not broadcast from Carrier Dome following Boeheim crash
• Friends, family remember Jorge Jimenez, victim of I-690 crash involving Jim Boeheim

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Published on February 22, 2019 at 1:21 pm

Contact Billy: wmheyen@syr.edu | @Wheyen3