The Syracuse basketball squad faces an unbelievably difficult task on Tuesday night when SU pays a visit to red-hot North Carolina in an ACC showdown.
The SU hoops program is getting ready to square off with its second top-five opponent in a row. The ‘Cuse (18-9, 9-5), following an emotional 10-point loss to then-No. 1 Duke at the Carrier Dome over the weekend, will travel to No. 5 North Carolina (22-5, 12-2) on Tuesday evening.
The Tar Heels are surging. They’ve captured 10 victories in their last 11 affairs, including a recent success against the Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium, along with a home blowout of then-No. 16 Florida State last weekend.
UNC, 12-2 on its own turf so far in the 2018-19 campaign, is certainly in serious contention to secure the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season title, while the Orange finds itself in a tie for fifth place in the league race with the Seminoles, prior to FSU’s encounter with Notre Dame on Monday.
Presently possessing an NCAA NET ranking of No. 8, the Tar Heels are eying a possible No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the Big Dance, depending on how everything shakes out in the ACC and around the country. Syracuse, which is an impressive 5-2 on the road in this term, is No. 44 in the NCAA NET system. The bevy of prognosticators currently view SU as a No. 8 or No. 9 seed in March Madness, but the ‘Cuse has a rough schedule before the conference tournament begins.
In its four regular-season contests that remain, the Orange will duel two teams in the AP top-25 poll, and three of those games are away from Central New York. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. If Syracuse can reach 20 total triumphs heading into the ACC tourney, I’m confident that it will hear its name called on Selection Sunday. Anything less than that, and SU will likely need to pick up a success in the ACC Tournament to feel safe.
Defeating North Carolina could seal up an at-large bid to the field of 68 all by itself for the ‘Cuse, however, the Orange has struggled versus the Tar Heels in recent stanzas, and this year’s UNC roster is on a roll. North Carolina scores a ton of points, averaging roughly 87 every 40 minutes. The Tar Heels, shooting 47 percent from the field, 74 percent from the charity stripe, and nearly 38 percent from downtown, will exert enormous pressure on Syracuse’s 2-3 zone.
Furthermore, UNC is really strong on the glass, and that, unfortunately, is an area where SU often fares poorly. Should the ‘Cuse provide the Tar Heels with a bunch of second-chance scoring opportunities, I don’t see how the Orange can prevail. Syracuse’s big men, in particular, have to compete with aggression and laser-focus.
Additionally, one component of this match-up where SU must achieve is in the turnover department. North Carolina commits about 14 miscues each contest, and the ‘Cuse has to feast off of those mistakes and convert them into easy buckets. The Orange has a tough challenge on the horizon in trying to upset the Tar Heels at the Smith Center, but anything could happen in this topsy-turvy campaign for Syracuse.