Syracuse Basketball: Orange opens ACC play at Notre Dame

The Syracuse basketball squad is hitting the road for a critical Atlantic Coast Conference duel this coming Saturday with Notre Dame.

Let Atlantic Coast Conference competition commence.

The SU hoops outfit is set to leave the friendly Carrier Dome confines for an enticing affair this Saturday afternoon at Notre Dame.

It’s the inaugural encounter for the ‘Cuse in the ACC, following a 9-4 mark during the non-conference slate. The Syracuse fan base, myself included, is a tad disappointed in how SU has fared so far in the 2018-19 campaign.

Save for a success at nationally ranked Ohio State, the Orange has under-performed to date, at least when you factor in the lofty expectations for this roster prior to the present stanza starting.

Senior point guard Frank Howard still doesn’t seem like he’s at 100 percent, and we’ll need him to round into top form should Syracuse hope for a strong showing in the ACC race.

Junior wing Tyus Battle, on the other hand, had an exceptional performance in his most-recent game, when the ‘Cuse blasted St. Bonaventure on the Hill in late December. Battle’s 21 points resulted in him getting named the ACC Player of the Week for the second instance in the 2018-19 term.

At this juncture, SU is 59th in the NCAA’s NET ratings, while its next opponent, the Fighting Irish, is 65th. ND (10-4) enters this event with only one setback at home in 2018-19, a puzzling three-point loss to Radford. The Fighting Irish’s other three defeats are on a neutral court to Oklahoma, with the Sooners presently No. 23 in the AP top-25 poll, at UCLA and at No. 10 Virginia Tech on Jan. 1.

Notre Dame possesses home conquests of DePaul and Illinois, and the Fighting Irish also bested Purdue at a neutral site. This is probably not one of the more talented ND crews in recent memory, but the Fighting Irish is no cakewalk, either, especially on its own turf.

Given the Orange’s slightly sluggish non-conference outcome, it’s imperative that the ‘Cuse secures some momentum early in the ACC calendar. My gut tells me that Syracuse will need a minimum of 10 conference victories, including several away from Central New York and against ranked foes, to have a realistic chance of earning a Big Dance invite.

The opportunities are absolutely there, but the SU guys have to work their tails off to better gel as a cohesive unit. Notching an ACC road conquest at the onset would certainly prove huge.

Statistically speaking, Notre Dame collects more points on offense and gives up more points on defense. The Fighting Irish holds advantages in shooting percentages from both the 3-point line and the charity stripe, as well as in rebounds, assists and blocks. The Orange, however, nabs more steals.

One caveat with these numbers is that I believe the ‘Cuse has faced tougher groups in the non-conference schedule. Overall, this pair of programs is relatively even, and stellar play is required for Syracuse to prevail!