The annual March Madness tournament isn’t kicking off this week, so let’s take a trip down memory lane with Syracuse basketball in the Big Dance.
Those who know me would readily acknowledge that I’m passionately fervent about two things in the world of sports: Syracuse basketball and the NCAA Tournament.
Nothing beats the few weeks every year when the Big Dance transpires. Of course, the Orange’s inclusion is extremely important within that context, but even in the seasons when the ‘Cuse doesn’t make the cut, I find myself giddy like a little kid throughout the duration of March Madness.
As soon as the brackets are unveiled, it’s pure bliss. The boatload of intriguing matchups that fill the opening rounds, commencing at noon (and at 9 a.m. for those occurrences when my buddies and I have traversed to Las Vegas), is an unrivaled delight.
The upsets. The Cinderella stories. The powerhouses that fall early, or stay around late. Dreams, for some, are shattered. For others, they are made. I love it all, including One Shining Moment.
That the NCAA Tournament isn’t beginning its journey this week dejects me, and millions of other college-basketball fans, to no end. Without question, the canceling of this event had to happen, and we all must band together to keep this planet as safe as entirely possible.
I firmly believe that holding this sort of competition with student-athletes, coaches and their staff, and family members, even without the tens of thousands of fans who would have filled the various arenas, couldn’t ensue given the escalation of the novel coronavirus pandemic. Undoubtedly, it proved a tough decision for NCAA officials, but the right one.
Once word broke that the Big Dance wouldn’t go on, it got me daydreaming about the abundance of fond memories – both the highs and the lows – that I’ve curated since I graduated from Syracuse University in 2000.
My how quickly 20 years have passed.
Since I’m in a nostalgic frame of mind, I figured it might prove fun – and, on occasion, heart-wrenching – to share my own personal thoughts of the Orange’s involvement in March Madness over the last two decades. Here goes nothing.
Elation in The Big Easy
It’s 2001, and my first NCAA Tournament after departing the Hill isn’t an auspicious one, as the No. 5 seed ‘Cuse is blown out in the round of 32 by the No. 4 seed Kansas. Hey, we’ll get the Jayhawks when it truly counts, so all good.
Woo-hoo, Syracuse advances to the Final Four in 2002! Oh wait, it’s the NIT, not the Big Dance.
Most folks will correctly assess that I’m a weird dude for saying this, and that’s legit, but April 7, 2003, will forever amount to one of the finest days in my life. The third-seeded Orange, despite a handful of tight spots on its ride to the national-title tilt versus second-seeded Kansas, is cruising in the first 20 minutes.
I’m watching this contest, nervously, at the apartment which I share with my brother in Maryland. Our parents have dinner with us and see the initial stanza, and then they head home. The ‘Cuse boasts a sizable intermission edge, but I fully admit that the final 20 minutes will prove excruciating. That’s the Syracuse way.
The Jayhawks, of course, trim the deficit. The lead becomes barely recognizable. Is this 1987 all over again? My poor brother, he can’t even watch the ending, so he goes upstairs to his room.
The Orange does almost everything conceivable to lose. Missed free throws. Turnovers. Bad shot selection. Complacency. I could go on and on and on.
My anxiety level is through the roof. But then THE BLOCK arrives from power forward Hakim Warrick. And so does the inaugural NCAA championship for the ‘Cuse and boss Jim Boeheim. Once the outcome is upon us, I scream as I’ve never screamed before.
My brother may not have witnessed the ending, but he knows the result. Syracuse exacts revenge on Kansas, and I don’t sleep a wink that night. Totally worth it.
The mid-decade dip
A captivating bracket is revealed in 2004, as my alma mater and the defending national champs, the No. 5 seed Orange, square off with the 2002 NCAA tourney winner, my hometown Maryland Terrapins, a No. 4 seed, in the round of 32.
I definitely feel torn in this encounter, since my Mom is an alum of the Terps and I grew up about 20 minutes from College Park, but the ‘Cuse squeaks past UMD. I have high hopes that Syracuse could gain entry to the Elite Eight, or beyond, but the Orange falls in the Sweet 16 to No. 8 seed Alabama.
The start of four awful campaigns in a row resides in 2005. The No. 4 seed ‘Cuse is upset in the round of 64 by No. 13 seed Vermont, in overtime. Yuck. Thankfully, Syracuse will spank the Catamounts five years later.
Another first-round dismissal in 2006, and it’s a crappy mini-trend. Texas A&M, a No. 12 seed, knocks off the fifth-seeded Orange.
In 2007, the ‘Cuse has the dubious distinction as the first Big East Conference member to capture 10 league meetings and not secure an invite to March Madness. Whatever.
A second-consecutive NIT appearance lands in Syracuse’s lap in 2008. Whatever, again.
The euphoria of claiming the ultimate prize, unquestionably, will never vanish, but its glamor is fading a tad for me at this juncture. Don’t get me wrong, I always bleed Orange, through and through.
Plus, to get to a regional semi-final the term that follows the 2003 trophy is absolutely commendable. However, the ‘Cuse then coughs up a pair of opening-round bouts as the convincingly better seed and is relegated to two-straight NIT showings.
A quartet of misery. I’m unequivocally bummed. My confidence in Syracuse is waning. I fear that Boeheim, and his program, are slipping.
Boy oh boy, am I clueless. My friends, we’re entering perhaps the finest stretch in the Orange’s history over the next several stints.
Launch of the glorious age
I travel up to New York City in 2009 with my brother and friends to enjoy March Madness in the Big Apple. The ‘Cuse, a No. 3 seed, battles No. 6 seed Arizona State in the round of 32.
The Sun Devils’ line-up features shooting guard James Harden, and the vaunted Syracuse 2-3 zone effectively bottles up the current NBA star. The Orange moves on to the Sweet 16, where it runs into second-seeded Oklahoma and stud Blake Griffin. A 13-point defeat, for me anyways, doesn’t entirely erase a 28-victory season for the ‘Cuse.
A what-if emerges in 2010. Boeheim, deservedly so, earns national coach of the year honors, Syracuse attains the No. 1 ranking across the country, and the Orange receives a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. This is one of the most-complete crews ever for the ‘Cuse, and a favorite to get to the Final Four.
But.
Sadly, center Arinze Onuaku suffers an injury in the Big East tourney, and that dampens the good guys’ prospects. Syracuse entertains No. 5 seed Butler in the Sweet 16. I’m at a bar in our nation’s capital, on pins and needles. The Orange clings to a four-point advantage with a handful of minutes to go, but the ‘Cuse can’t hang on.
Putting my homer-ism aside, I will always affirm that Syracuse in 2010 would have cut down the nets if Onuaku doesn’t get injured. Ugh.
In 2011, the No. 3 seed Orange faces off with No. 11 seed Marquette in the round of 32. ‘Cuse guard Scoop Jardine is whistled for a non-sense over-and-back violation with the score tied, and 51 seconds left. Syracuse loses by four points.
There’s no guarantee that, even without the bogus call, the Orange would have conquered the Golden Eagles, but that still stung a whole lot. The ‘Cuse finishes with a solid 27 successes.
Dynamic duo of prosperity
What-if, part two, is in 2012. Syracuse wraps up the regular stanza at an astounding 30-1. Similar to 2010, the Orange is No. 1 in the polls for a duration, and a No. 1 seed in the Big Dance. Yet just prior to March Madness, center Fab Melo is deemed ineligible. You’ve got to be kidding me.
Melo’s defensive prowess is impossible to replace. I’m partying with my buds in Las Vegas, pool-side, for the round of 64 tilt between the ‘Cuse and No. 16 seed UNC Asheville. I swear that Syracuse is going to do the unimaginable, but the Orange pulls out a seven-point achievement.
Syracuse scrapes its way to the Elite Eight versus No. 2 seed Ohio State. I post up at an Orange bar in Washington, D.C. It’s boisterous and awesome. Then, the ‘Cuse is called for a gazillion fouls. That’s correct, a gazillion. The Buckeyes win by seven points and go to the Final Four.
Syracuse, meanwhile, wraps up at 34-3. With Melo in tow, the Orange likely would have played Kentucky in the final game.
One of my primary bucket-list items is to attend a Final Four. The ‘Cuse, after a roller-coaster regular campaign in 2013, is seeded fourth in the NCAA Tournament. I’m in Vegas (see a pattern?) for Syracuse’s domination of No. 13 seed Montana, and its escape of No. 12 seed California.
The Orange wallops No. 1 seed Indiana in the Sweet 16. Up next is Big East nemesis Marquette, a No. 3 seed, in the Elite Eight. This bruiser is held in D.C., where I live, so my parents, my brother and I pony up the dough to watch in-person.
As it becomes lucid that the ‘Cuse is going to prevail and advance to the Final Four, I’m screaming at the top of my lungs, much like in 2003. I’ll never, ever forget Boeheim and the Syracuse players taking their turns slicing away pieces of the net. Utter joy.
Because of my desire to go to a Final Four, and the fact that the Orange is in this one, my brother, two ‘Cuse friends and I trek to Atlanta.
What a scene. Syracuse faithful abound. We find an Orange bar before the ‘Cuse suits up against fourth-seeded Michigan. Hundreds of happy Syracuse peeps having beers and smiling. Perfect.
The contest doesn’t go as planned, although credit the Orange for mounting a comeback versus the Wolverines in the second half. Guard Brandon Triche, one of my all-time favs, gets whistled for a BS charge toward the end, and Michigan triumphs by five points.
I’m upset, but it’s not too bad. I cheered on my alma mater, live, at the Final Four. No complaints.
ACC brings a mixed bag
The ‘Cuse joins the Atlantic Coast Conference, and the Orange begins 25-0. Wow. My biggest concern, though, is that Syracuse is consistently playing with fire by constantly conjuring up accomplishments by razor-thin margins.
A late-term spiral pushes the Orange into the 2014 March Madness in a slump, and the third-seeded ‘Cuse is upset by No. 11 seed Dayton in the round of 32. Not to worry, however, as Syracuse will take out the Flyers in two years.
The Orange’s self-imposed, post-season ban means no NCAA Tournament in 2015, and the ‘Cuse is starting to come off its high of a spectacular span from 2009 to 2014.
Sanctions, most notably recruiting limitations and scholarship reductions, coupled with the bolt to the ACC, will serve as critical factors in Syracuse’s regular-campaign struggles in the near future.
The Orange barely makes the field of 68 in 2016, but does the most with its opportunity. A No. 10 seed, the ‘Cuse crushes No. 7 seed Dayton (thank you) as I’m on the train to New York City, and then Syracuse does the same to Middle Tennessee State, a No. 15 seed, while I’m grubbing and drinking with my brother at a chill NYC restaurant.
Center Tyler Lydon’s block saves the day when the Orange evades No. 11 seed Gonzaga in the Sweet 16. I’m in my D.C. apartment for the Elite Eight encounter with top-seeded Virginia.
Reverting back to 2003 and 2013, I scream at a frenetic pace, as wing Malachi Richardson engineers a 29-8 rally following intermission, and the ‘Cuse goes to the Final Four after besting the Cavaliers, 68–62.
Sure, No. 1 seed North Carolina pastes Syracuse in the national semi-finals, but the Orange played with house money there. What a fabulous odyssey for the ‘Cuse.
Syracuse can never find its defensive identity in 2017, and the Orange is stuck in the NIT. Crud.
Sweetness, then sorrow
The ‘Cuse, a No. 11 seed, is the last group picked for the Big Dance in 2018 but manages a Sweet 16 adventure. Close conquests of No. 11 seed Arizona State in the First Four and No. 6 seed TCU in the round of 64 have me continually sweating, yet proud.
For the match-up with No. 3 seed Michigan State in the round of 32, I meet some friends at a Syracuse bar in the Chinatown neighborhood of D.C. I don’t have lofty aspirations for the Orange versus the mighty Spartans, but the ‘Cuse is able to stick around.
The energy is rocking. People, most of them at least slightly inebriated, are clapping and high-fiving and believing that Syracuse can do this. The Orange emerges victorious, 55–53, and I’m on cloud nine.
To dock in the regional semi-finals, when almost everyone thought the ‘Cuse would lose and didn’t even belong in the field of 68, is a terrific feat.
Syracuse nearly knocks off No. 2 seed Duke in the Sweet 16. The Blue Devils win by four points. Regardless, I’m jubilant for the Orange team and its fan base.
The ‘Cuse, for the first instance in a while, is comfortably in the NCAA tourney as a No. 8 seed in 2019. But ninth-seeded Baylor connects on a barrage of 3-pointers in the opening round, and Syracuse gets beat by nine points without the services of point guard Frank Howard.
Another what-if scenario. Too many of those recently.
Speaking of that, we’ll, unfortunately, have to wonder about 2020. The Orange snapped a nine-affair skid to North Carolina in the ACC Tournament but would have needed to snag the conference’s post-season crown to go dancing. A tall task, indeed.
The what-if of the present doesn’t entail an injury or a suspension. It’s about something much more serious. Hopefully, a year from now, March Madness resumes. The ‘Cuse hears its name called on Selection Sunday.
And all the Syracuse enthusiasts out there are creating new memories as the Orange competes on collegiate hoops’ grandest stage. I’ll add that wish to my bucket list.