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Syracuse Basketball: Top 5 March Madness matchups for SU in opening round

By Paul A. Esden Jr.

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 14: Elijah Hughes #33 of the Syracuse Orange reacts after a 84-72 loss to the Duke Blue Devils after their game in the quarterfinal round of the 2019 Men's ACC Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 14, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 14: Elijah Hughes #33 of the Syracuse Orange reacts after a 84-72 loss to the Duke Blue Devils after their game in the quarterfinal round of the 2019 Men's ACC Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 14, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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Syracuse vs Minnesota

  • 9 vs 8 matchup
  • 67th in the NCAA Net Rankings

I don’t know how it is for other people but as a Syracuse guy I will forever have disdain for the University of Minnesota. Why? First off Kirk Cousins using the New York Jets as leverage to get more money from the Minnesota Vikings, but more importantly Mark Coyle left Syracuse to go there.

Now on a side note, everything has seemed to work out: the Jets drafted Sam Darnold a year ago today (March 17th) and Syracuse hired John Wildhack who has thrived as the Athletic Director for the Orange even negotiating a long-term extension to keep Dino Babers in the salt city.

But Coyle just kind of skipped out on town and it left a sour taste in Syracuse fans mouths, so I’m sure smacking around some Golden Gophers will help ease that pain. How good is Minnesota?

They are the 67th best team per the NCAA Net Rankings which is the worst of any team in this top-five possible matchups for the Orange. Although a few things seem to be trending in the right direction for Minnesota:

  • They have won four out of their last six games.
    • With two of those coming against Purdue who was ranked in the top-15 in both matchups.
  • Another team with a steady balanced offense: three players score in double figures, while two more are on the fringe of accomplishing that feat. Two players who play significantly average better than 40 percent on their long-range attempts.
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