Syracuse Basketball: FSU loss is a bummer, but let’s applaud the Orange

Syracuse basketball unfortunately fell again in a tight tilt to an ACC foe, however, the Orange players should hold their heads up extremely high.

Syracuse basketball had a prime occasion to pick up a marquee success against a top-10 opponent on the road when the Orange battled Florida State on Saturday afternoon.

The chips didn’t arrive the way of the ‘Cuse, as Syracuse (14-11, 7-7) faded down the stretch versus the No. 8 Seminoles (21-4, 11-3), with FSU pulling out an 80-77 achievement.

I get that Orange Nation is disappointed in how the 2019-20 campaign has transpired.

Many ‘Cuse fanatics, following the latest heart-breaking setback, have declared that Syracuse has no chance at an NCAA Tournament berth, that Jim Boeheim doesn’t know how to coach, that his son, sophomore guard Buddy Boeheim, shouldn’t see so much court time and that the Orange hoops program is an embarrassment.

While everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion, from my perspective, the bulk of the aforementioned negative sentiments are utter non-sense. Yes, the ‘Cuse is mired in a slump and will likely hear its name called for the NIT, instead of the Big Dance.

Yes, the younger Boeheim had a woeful performance against the Seminoles, but keep in mind that he’s also put forth an abundance of stellar outings. His father, the legendary Syracuse head coach, has guided his roster to numerous measured improvements since the current stanza commenced.

Let’s provide some context here.

The Orange witnessed the majority of its offensive production from a term ago depart, with just one starter, redshirt junior forward Elijah Hughes, returning. The ‘Cuse brought in five freshmen. The remainder of the Syracuse line-up, for the most part, didn’t get a whole lot of action in 2018-19.

What’s more, as the present season has carried on, the Orange bench has thinned out due to multiple guys getting injured. The ‘Cuse has minimal depth, and Florida State exploited that facet, with the Seminoles generating sizable scoring advantages at the end of both halves.

Sure, it’s frustrating that FSU smoked Syracuse on the boards. Separately, the Orange forced the Seminoles into a whopping 18 miscues, but it didn’t prove enough to squeak out a massive upset.

For me, I wish that the ‘Cuse would focus more on producing points in the paint. Earlier in 2019-20, Syracuse certainly could light things up from deep, but that hasn’t continued of late. In Tallahassee, the Orange and Florida State connected on exactly the same number of field goals, but the Seminoles hit four more 3-pointers. Ball game, folks.

So, yeah, we’re all bummed about the state of the ‘Cuse this year. I get it. However, look at the situation in this regard for a second. In the non-conference slate, Syracuse would get dominated in its defeats.

In the Atlantic Coast Conference calendar to date, the Orange has gotten beat, for example, by nine points to Duke, one point to Clemson and Notre Dame, three points to Florida State, four points to Virginia Tech, and five points to N.C. State.

Therefore, I would submit that the ‘Cuse, despite its average record, is right there in a lot of its affairs. Its relatively inexperienced crew is growing up. The results aren’t all that terrific, but the grit, heart, and toughness of Syracuse are attributes that we should admire.