Syracuse Basketball: Crazy loud fans made the Dome electric – yes, please

Syracuse basketball smoked one of the Atlantic Coast Conference’s premier squads throughout the 2021-22 campaign this past Saturday night, and the crowd inside the Carrier Dome was simply fabulous.

Students had already ventured back for the current semester, which certainly helped the cause. Between the students and the general Syracuse-area community, more than 23,000 fans piled into the Dome, according to the crowd announced by SU officials.

I absolutely loved seeing this. We all know that the 2021-22 season has proven a tough one to date for the ‘Cuse, and it’s understandable that a lot of Orange fans are disappointed, upset and even angry.

We even documented in a column late last week some of the feelings of certain ‘Cuse fans. In any event, it appears that the announced crowd for the Orange’s triumph over the Demon Deacons was the largest so far in 2021-22 on a college campus.

All I can say about this is, heck yeah!

Syracuse basketball fans were amazing in their support of the Orange last weekend.

After the ‘Cuse (10-11, 4-6) handled Wake Forest, 94-72, Syracuse basketball head coach Jim Boeheim said in his post-game press conference that it was good to have the students back. He said the fans really got into the game, and that proved helpful to his squad.

Senior forward Cole Swider, in his own post-game presser, said playing in front of more than 23,000 screaming fans was “electric,” and he added that the Orange will need this type of crowd moving forward to help the ‘Cuse reach its full potential.

Swider noted that he and his teammates are aware of some comments made by Orange fans. Swider knows that some fans say this is the worst Syracuse basketball team in the history of the program.

It’s proven a season of ups and downs and, as is well-documented, a bunch of heart-breaking, close setbacks. But the ‘Cuse performed at such a high level in beating the Demon Deacons, with the fans loving it, and the players feeding off of the fans.

Maybe, with this kind of confidence-booster, Syracuse basketball can go on a run. Kudos to the Orange fan base for showing up on Saturday evening and cheering like crazy.

As senior shooting guard Buddy Boeheim said, there’s a lot more that the ‘Cuse can do in the remainder of the 2021-22 season. I’m hopeful Buddy Buckets is right.