Trevor Cooney was a shooting guard for Syracuse University. He was a three point shooter known for his streaky shooting as well as his stellar defense in the Syracuse zone.

Cooney would redshirt his freshman year. Syracuse had an abundance of guards with senior Scoop Jardine, junior Brandon Triche, sophomore Dion Waiters and freshman Michael Carter-Williams all likely to have significant playing time.

Cooney was poised to be the third guard for Syracuse in his first season. However, he would struggle with his perimeter shooting for almost the entire season, never finding the rhythm he displayed daily in practice. He did play well on defense, and made some note with his hustle on the court, but he often played less than ten minutes in the game. His big moment of the season was in the Big East tournament against Georgetown where he came off the bench to provide some offensive spark hitting 2 of 3 three point shots for a total of 10 points in the overtime win.

Cooney moved into the starting lineup his sophomore year, and had a breakout game in the season opener against Cornell. He would score 28 points while hitting seven of eight three point attempts. Cooney was the lone real perimeter threat on the team, and often the teams offensive success depended on how well he was shooting. He had big games in wins over Villanova and Indiana. His biggest game of the year was against Notre Dame in February. The rest of the Orange team struggled to shoot, while Cooney made 11 out of 15 field goal attempts including 9 out of 12 three point attempts to lead both teams in scoring with 33 points.

Cooney would struggle during Syracuse's rough streak at the end of the season, the lone bright spot being an 18 point effort against Western Michigan in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Cooney would be the team's most prolific three point shooter his junior season. He would struggle with consistency in this three point shooting all year long, and would again struggle down the last stretch of the season, in part because he hurt his back in the Louisville game. Cooney faced very stiff defensive coverage as he was viewed as the team's only real three point threat for most of the season. However, even when he did occasionally find himself open for a shot, he struggled to make it. Cooney was playing almost every minute of every game, and fatigue was taking a toll in games.

Cooney did have a great game against Florida State, hitting 7 of 11 three point attempts and scoring 28 points leading the Orange to victory. In late February, the Orange traveled to #9 Notre Dame. Syracuse clung to a three point lead when Syracuse All American Rakeem Christmas fouled out. The Fighting Irish looked poised to retake the lead, when Cooney would score seven straight points, a couple baskets which occurred as the shot clock expired, helping the Orange win the game.

Cooney would again struggle to find consistency with his shooting during his senior year. He particularly struggled with making baskets near the hoop, making only 34% of his shots inside the arc. Cooney however, was a trusted fifth year senior on the court, and played outstanding defense in Jim Boeheim's zone. As a result, he played a lot of minutes, and rarely sat. He did have some big games. In a loss to #6 North Carolina, Cooney scored 27 points, and a couple of games later he would score 25 points in a win over Wake Forest. He once again kept his reputation as an 'Irish Killer' with 22 points in a victory over Notre Dame.

Cooney would start to shoot with consistency in the NCAA tournament, and made some spectacular defensive plays. He had a memorable steal against Gonzaga as the game time was running out, and Syracuse was clinging to a one point lead. Cooney stole a pass beneath the Orange hoop from Gonzaga's Josh Perkins, which would have given the Orange the ball with 12 second to go. However, the officials mistakenly thought Cooney had stepped out of bounds (replays showed he had not), and gave the ball back to Gonzaga. The Orange defense held, and Syracuse went on to win.

The Orange would play North Carolina in the Final Four. Syracuse would struggle most of the game against the Tar Heels, though Cooney played well, scoring 22 points.

Cooney would play professionally one season in the G-League for the Long Island Nets (2016-2017), and a few years overseas in Spain and Germany. [1]

© RLYoung 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015. 2016, 2017, 2023

[1] Proballers.com, Trevor Cooney Stats