Syracuse basketball has a ton of work to do before even thinking of reaching the NCAA Tournament, but the Orange does have momentum on its side.
Syracuse basketball enters its clash at Notre Dame this Wednesday night carrying a three-game success streak and a renewed sense of optimism.
Triumphs on the road versus Virginia Tech and Virginia, plus a home demolition of Boston College, provide recent evidence that the Orange (11-7, 4-3) can hold its own in the Atlantic Coast Conference, which is presently a jumbled mess.
While the bevy of ‘Cuse fanatics, myself included, believe that Syracuse remains a heavy long-shot to ultimately get an at-large invite to the 2020 Big Dance, what the current stanza has shown is that there aren’t any real dominant teams and that anything can happen on any given day in league competition.
In no way, shape or form will I ever anoint myself as a so-called bracketologist, however, I do feel that there’s a guideline for the Orange to get into March Madness. For me, the magic number is 20 total achievements, between the regular term and the ACC Tournament, and then the ‘Cuse hopefully could warrant serious consideration on the bubble.
Syracuse has 13 affairs left in its conference docket, with seven of them away from the Hill, and a half-dozen in Central New York. If the Orange can notch a mark of 8-5, then go 1-1 in the ACC tourney, the ‘Cuse will wrap up 2019-20 at 20-13. By no means does that guarantee Syracuse a spot in the Big Dance, but it at least puts the Orange in the conversation, in my humble opinion.
If that scenario transpires, the ‘Cuse would have collected 12 regular-campaign conquests in the league. I acknowledge that the ACC isn’t its usual stellar self in 2019-20, but a dozen conference wins could help to overshadow Syracuse’s poor 7-4 count in the non-conference slate.
Another attribute to stew on is that the Orange, to date, doesn’t possess any truly awful setbacks on its resume. The ‘Cuse, additionally, has a pair of those coveted quadrant-one accomplishments, against the aforementioned Hokies and Cavaliers, with more chances lurking, albeit not an abundance of them.
Let’s delve into these 13 encounters for a second. Syracuse will host Pittsburgh, Duke, Wake Forest, N.C. State, Georgia Tech and North Carolina.
Given the Orange’s inconsistency in 2019-20, it could drop all six or prevail in every one of them. Realistically, though, save for its meeting with the Blue Devils, the ‘Cuse has decent odds to come out on top in the other five events. A 4-2 performance would absolutely suffice.
Should that occur, Syracuse would need to tally a 4-3 record on the road, or perhaps even better due to its weird struggles at home, to inch toward 20 combined victories. The Orange travels to Notre Dame, Clemson, Florida State, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Boston College, and Miami.
It’s never easy to reign in a hostile environment, but the ‘Cuse has proven it can do it. The Seminoles and the Cardinals are tall tasks if you ask me, however, the other five aren’t completely out of the realm of possibilities. Collegiate hoops is a roller coaster in 2019-20, and my fingers are crossed that Syracuse can muster up just enough to hear its name called on Selection Sunday.