Syracuse basketball will be highly ranked if it thrives over next few weeks

I’m one of those Syracuse basketball fans who doesn’t care one iota if the Orange is ranked in pre-season top-25 polls, and I feel this way for two main reasons.

Number one, pre-season ballots don’t mean much at all. College teams haven’t yet played a single game, which results in “guesstimates” at best from the media members and coaches who participate in these polls.

Secondly, I think that the ‘Cuse often seems to fare well when the national expectations for the team are mild and tempered. The NCAA championship-winning squad of 2002-03 is a prime example.

That being said, as a season progresses, I certainly want to see my beloved Orange string together victories and land in the major polls. And if the ‘Cuse can survive – and thrive – during a brutal portion of its upcoming 2021-22 schedule, then SU should find itself highly rated in the Associated Press and Coaches top-25 polls.

Syracuse basketball has some bruising foes lurking on the horizon.

To commence the present stanza, the Orange smoked Lafayette and then picked up a solid win against a good Drexel team, with both results occurring at home. So far, so good.

Over the next few weeks, let’s examine what the ‘Cuse will endure. This Saturday, Syracuse basketball will host fellow Empire State crew Colgate, which is an excellent squad that played in the most recent Big Dance.

Then, around the Thanksgiving holiday, the Orange will have three games in the 2021 Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis. First up is VCU and then likely Baylor, a group that is the defending national champs and also currently rated in the top-10 nationally.

The third opponent for the ‘Cuse will be one of Auburn, Connecticut, Loyola Chicago and Michigan State, the first two of which are ranked, with the second pairing each receiving votes in the AP top-25 poll.

At the end of November, Syracuse basketball hosts Indiana as part of the 2021 ACC-Big Ten Challenge. The Hoosiers reside just outside of the AP top-25 ballot as one of the first units receiving votes.

The Orange’s next three games after that are at Florida State in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for the ‘Cuse, followed by a top-five Villanova squad in New York City, and then on the road versus Georgetown.

Wowsers. Look, I don’t want to sit here and pretend that Syracuse basketball is going to run the table against all of those challenging foes.

But even if the Orange suffers, say, one defeat, but picks up a couple of marquee conquests, then I’d find it hard to believe that the ‘Cuse wouldn’t find itself ranked among the top-15 teams across the country.

Okay, I know. One game at a time. Time to prepare for Colgate, which should prove an entertaining battle on the Hill.