Syracuse Basketball: Virginia Cavaliers (round 2) crystal ball predictions

SYRACUSE, NY - NOVEMBER 06: Mamadi Diakite #25 of the Virginia Cavaliers greets teammate Jay Huff #30 following a made basket against the Syracuse Orange during the second half at the Carrier Dome on November 6, 2019 in Syracuse, New York. Virginia defeated Syracuse 48-34. (Photo by Rich Barnes/Getty Images) /

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Syracuse basketball (Photo by Rich Barnes/Getty Images) /

Syracuse basketball squares up against Virginia for its first rematch of the season. Here are our full crystal ball predictions and top x-factors.

A lot has changed since the last time Syracuse basketball and Virginia met on the hardwood. The Cavaliers have only lost three games (vs Purdue, vs South Carolina, and vs Boston College) and they’re 11-3 overall and 3-1 in the ACC.

While the Orange are barely above .500 (8-7, 1-3 in the conference). Syracuse scored a season-low 34 points vs Virginia in the first game of the season and will be hoping to score a few more this go around on Saturday afternoon.

The Cavaliers are an overwhelming favorite according to every metric ahead of this pivotal ACC clash. ESPN BPI Analytics gives Virginia the edge with a 77.5 percentile.

Both teams are in desperate need of a marquee win as both programs lack a true skin on the wall. A win could propel Syracuse into a momentous run and a loss would cripple this team back to .500 with an 8-8 record 16 games into the season.

So ultimately how will this game play out? We have the full crystal ball predictions ahead of this game and the top x-factors to watch out for in this game.

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