Syracuse Basketball’s March, thankfully, is chock full of madness

Fasten your seatbelts, ‘Cuse Nation, as the SU hoops outfit is taking off for the First Four and a juicy match-up with Arizona State.

The Orange basketball squad’s bubble didn’t burst, so bust out your dancing shoes, ladies and gentlemen.

While I’m undeniably proud of what Syracuse has accomplished to date in 2017-18, the ride isn’t yet over. SU represented the last at-large outfit to get invited to the field of 68, and our beloved boys are once again in the NCAA Tournament after missing the cut a season ago.

I absolutely love, love, love the enthusiasm displayed by our crew after discovering that it made the Big Dance. These guys, extremely young and lacking any depth whatsoever, fought hard during the present term, and the reward of reaching March Madness is super sweet.

Sure, we had our ups and downs, but the grit, heart and toughness exhibited by head coach Jim Boeheim’s bunch is second to none. I get that other bubble bunches are angry, disappointed and frustrated, and I respect the feelings along those lines.

However, the bevy of negativity toward the ‘Cuse shown by industry analysts and pundits, as well as other teams’ fans, seems a bit hyperbolic in my humble opinion.

I’m in no way saying that the Orange has an imposing resume, but the comments are fairly

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ridiculous, in some instances. SU securing a bid is insulting, a joke, laughable and a travesty, some have opined.

Honestly, give me a break. All of the groups that either barely made it in, or proved among the first to get rejected, have deficiencies and holes in their respective resumes. This, I might add, includes Syracuse.

But … our strength of schedule is strong, our RPI is solid, we have a decent number of road successes, we landed four Quadrant 1 victories, we’ve beaten six NCAA tourney rosters, we collected eight RPI top-100 conquests, and we possess a mere few “bad” losses.

My gut told me that we would not hear our name called on Selection Sunday. My gut didn’t get it right.

I’m ecstatic.

Twelve months after learning that we amounted to the first program left out of the NCAA Tournament, we are now, in this go-round, the concluding one which got in.

It is what it is. The salt from the prior stanza has turned into sugar.

With that drama in the rear-view mirror, let’s focus on the actual affair that will arrive on Wednesday evening, when the ‘Cuse (20-13, 8-10) collides in the First Four against Arizona State (20-11, 8-10) in Dayton, Ohio.

SU and the Sun Devils, both No. 11 seeds, are slotted in the ultra-scary Midwest Region, where there are other participants like Kansas, Duke, Michigan State, Auburn and Clemson. Holy smokes.

ASU is guided by head coach Bobby Hurley, a legendary collegiate player who claimed two national championships with the aforementioned Blue Devils in 1991 and 1992.

He’s done a terrific job with the Sun Devils in 2017-18, leading them to impressive wins in the non-conference slate on a neutral court versus Xavier, a No. 1 seed in March Madness, as well as the previously noted Jayhawks, the No. 1 seed in our region, on Kansas’ home turf.

As context, I think we all remember how the Jayhawks crushed the Orange before conference competition got underway.

With a current RPI of 66, Arizona State also has notched defeats of Colorado, Kansas State, San Diego State, Southern California, UCLA and Utah. Not too shabby. The Sun Devils finished in a tie for eighth in the Pac-12 standings.

ASU had some late-campaign struggles, but this squad can score, averaging about 84 points a game while connecting on 36 percent from beyond the arc and 46 percent from the field as a whole.

Syracuse, with a RPI of 45 and 1-1 in its overall series against Arizona State, is a better defensive unit, and SU must pound the glass and contain the Sun Devils’ multiple 3-point threats should we hope to prevail.

I imagine that this duel will stay close throughout, and the ‘Cuse has to limit its careless turnovers. If the Orange can get its offense going, we have a legit chance at advancing.

Next: March Madness: Oshae Brissett, 4 other Canadian players to watch in NCAA tournament

That Syracuse even made the NCAA tourney is icing on the cake for me. Still, since we’re in at this juncture, why not triumph once or twice?

Or, seven times at that.