It’s quite simple for Syracuse basketball. Upset No. 1 seed Virginia on Thursday afternoon in the ACC Tournament’s quarterfinal round, and the Orange will go dancing later this month.
I know, I know. Nothing is ever for certain until the field of 68 is revealed on Selection Sunday. But based on the national conversation around the ‘Cuse, if the team advances to an ACC Tournament semifinal contest, or further, Syracuse basketball will receive an invite to March Madness.
Now, the question for many Orange fans out there is whether the ‘Cuse can get into the 2021 NCAA Tournament even if it falls to the No. 16 Cavaliers (17-6, 13-4), a squad that captured the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season title in 2020-21.
Give that fellow bubble bunches such as Louisville and Xavier lost in their conference tournaments on Wednesday, I feel like the Orange would still have a shot at the Big Dance even if it failed to conquer UVA.
Let’s face it, succumbing to the Cavaliers on a neutral court in Greensboro, N.C., would not be surprising nor a bad loss on the ‘Cuse resume. Although that is assuming that, at a minimum, Syracuse basketball played Virginia tough.
Earlier in 2020-21, the Cavaliers totally steamrolled the Orange in Charlottesville, Va., by a final count of 81-58. A similar kind of defeat for the ‘Cuse on Thursday afternoon in the ACC Tournament would not look good, but I don’t think that is going to transpire.
Syracuse basketball is right on the cutline for the NCAA Tournament.
The Orange (16-8, 9-7) is on a nice roll of late. Syracuse basketball took care of both North Carolina and Clemson at home last week, and in the ACC Tournament’s second round on Wednesday afternoon, the ‘Cuse played its best basketball of 2020-21 in destroying N.C. State, 89-68.
After the Orange handled the Wolfpack, and factoring in other results from Wednesday, CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm and ESPN’s Joe Lunardi inserted Syracuse basketball into the last four in of their mock brackets.
On the Bracket Matrix Web site, the ‘Cuse is listed in 32 projected fields of 68, with an average seed of 11.81. Syracuse basketball has jumped up to No. 39 in the NET rankings. I might add that Louisville is No. 57 and Xavier is No. 62 in these ratings. Just saying.
My sense is that the Orange will be a hot topic of conversation on Selection Sunday if it is unable to triumph over UVA, because the ‘Cuse will be firmly on the proverbial bubble.
Odds-makers are saying that the Cavaliers are a 5.5-point favorite in this ACC Tournament quarterfinal clash. ESPN’s Basketball Power Index gives Virginia a 68.4 percent chance to prevail. Syracuse basketball is just 6-9 all-time versus UVA.
No problem at all. The Orange often thrives when it’s the underdog.