Syracuse Orange news: Hoops’ rebounding woes, Cinderella teams, more

Seemingly year after year, rebounding is a hot-button topic among Syracuse Orange basketball fans, and the current 2022-23 season is no different.

As the ‘Cuse prepares to square off on the road against Georgia Tech in Atlanta this coming Saturday afternoon, the glass is definitely an area where the Orange could make some improvements.

In the team’s most recent outing, a heart-breaking 82-78 loss at No. 17 Miami this past Monday evening, the ‘Cuse lost the battle on the boards, 40-36, according to ESPN statistics. On the face of it, that’s not an awful disparity.

However, a key reason why the Hurricanes were able to claw back from an 11-point deficit in the second half to ultimately win by four points is that Miami got a ton of second-chance opportunities on offense via the glass.

Now, senior center Jesse Edwards did his part, grabbing 11 boards to go along with a career-high 25 points. Sophomore forward Benny Williams hauled in five boards, as did freshman point guard Judah Mintz.

But earlier this week, head coach Jim Boeheim discussed his squad’s rebounding efforts versus Miami, and unsurprisingly, he wasn’t pleased with those efforts, according to this piece from 247Sports.

For the 2022-23 stanza to date, according to SU Athletics, the ‘Cuse is averaging 36.6 rebounds per game, while its opponents are corralling 37.1 boards per encounter. That has to change for Syracuse Orange basketball.

Other Syracuse Orange news

Details on ‘Cuse men’s lax home games
Syracuse Orange men’s lacrosse, in the upcoming campaign, will look to rebound from a disappointing 4-10 record a season ago.

Per SU Athletics, the game times for the Orange’s home contests in 2023 have gotten announced, although the broadcast schedule will be announced at a later date.

According to cuse.com, Syracuse Orange men’s lacrosse will host nine encounters on the Hill during the 2023 regular season, with the first battle on Saturday, Feb. 4, beginning at 1 pm against Vermont.

As we noted in another recent column, ‘Cuse men’s lacrosse legend Michael Powell, a four-time first-team All-American and a two-time national champion, will have his jersey retired on Saturday, March 11, when Syracuse Orange men’s lacrosse plays Johns Hopkins at the JMA Wireless Dome.

NCAA/recruiting news

So who is this March’s Saint Peter’s?
Naturally, it stunk in 2021-22 when Syracuse Orange men’s basketball finished at 16-17 overall and wasn’t a contender for a berth in the 2022 NCAA Tournament. Still, for me, I adore March Madness regardless, particularly for all of the huge upsets year after year during the NCAA Tournament’s first weekend.

Last spring, when No. 15 seed Saint Peter’s knocked off No. 2 seed Kentucky and others to reach the Elite Eight, I thought that was simply fabulous. As we look ahead to the 2023 Big Dance this spring, of course I want the ‘Cuse to start notching quadrant-one victories and getting into the conversation for an invite.

But at the same time, I’m eager to see which mid-major, or mid-majors, are going to shock the college basketball world and emerge as beautiful Cinderella stories in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

A few days ago, David Cobb of CBS Sports published a piece where he and some of his colleagues discussed potential contenders at the mid-major level to win multiple games in the upcoming March Madness. Enjoy.