Syracuse basketball aims for revenge versus foe that crushed teams of late

Syracuse basketball enters its home contest against Wake Forest on Saturday night having lost two in a row, both by double-digits on the road.

The Demon Deacons, meanwhile, have won four straight games, including three victories in convincing fashion. Among those results for Wake Forest are large triumphs over Boston College, North Carolina and Georgia Tech, as well as an eight-point conquest at Virginia.

In setbacks at highly rated Duke and also at Pittsburgh over the past week, the Orange (9-11, 3-6) mightily struggled on offense. Now the ‘Cuse will welcome to the Hill a Demon Deacons group that is among the premier squads in the Atlantic Coast Conference to date during the 2021-22 stanza.

Not only is Wake Forest (17-4, 7-3) near the top of the ACC standings, but the Demon Deacons are also one of the highest-scoring outfits in the conference, averaging nearly 80 points per encounter. An Orange zone defense that allows roughly 75 points a game will surely have its hands full at the Carrier Dome on Saturday evening.

Syracuse basketball will square off with an excellent Wake Forest team.

As of this writing, the Demon Deacons were No. 35 nationally in the NET rankings. This means if the ‘Cuse can stun Wake Forest at home, it would represent arguably the most impressive success for Syracuse basketball at this juncture in 2021-22.

Earlier this month, the Orange nearly knocked off the Demon Deacons on their own turf, but the ‘Cuse fell in heart-breaking fashion, 77-74 in overtime.

From a statistical perspective, according to ESPN data, Syracuse basketball and Wake Forest are really close to one another in areas such as rebounding, assists, blocks and steals per affair.

The Demon Deacons connect on a strong 48.6 percent from the field, along with 74.3 percent from the charity stripe and a so-so 32.9 percent from beyond the arc. Wake Forest does commit a sizable number of turnovers per game, at 13.2.

While the Orange’s starting rotation generates virtually all of its scoring, the Demon Deacons spread things around a bit more. Seven Wake Forest players average at least six points per contest.

The Demon Deacons are also quite efficient on both ends of the floor. When I penned this column, Wake Forest was rated No. 31 overall via KenPom, including No. 45 in adjusted offensive efficiency and No. 37 in adjusted defensive efficiency.

My gut tells me that Syracuse basketball is going to play much better versus the Demon Deacons than it did against the Blue Devils and the Panthers. But it will take a tremendous all-around effort for the ‘Cuse to dispatch of Wake Forest in Central New York.