Syracuse Basketball: Duke betting favorite to win ACC tourney; see where ‘Cuse ranks

Syracuse basketball resides in the No. 8 spot as it pertains to odds to win this week’s ACC Tournament in Washington, D.C.

The Orange is the No. 7 seed in this season’s annual event. The ‘Cuse (20-11, 11-9 in the ACC) will first suit up in the ACC Tournament in the second round against either the No. 10 seed N.C. State (17-14, 9-11 in the ACC) or the No. 15 seed Louisville (8-23, 3-17 in the ACC).

This battle for Syracuse basketball will take place beginning at 7:00 pm on Wednesday, March 13, with television coverage on ESPN2. To hear its name called on Selection Sunday, the Orange will have to make a deep run – winning the ACC Tournament to gain an automatic bid, or perhaps reaching the championship game.

On Sunday, FanDuel listed the ‘Cuse in a tie with N.C. State for the eighth-highest odds to cut down the nets in our nation’s capital.

Here are the odds for Syracuse basketball and others to win the ACC Tournament, per FanDuel.

Duke +180
North Carolina +190
Wake Forest +750
Clemson +950
Virginia +1300
Pittsburgh +1600
Virginia Tech +3200
Syracuse +5000
N.C. State +5000
Florida State +6000
Miami +9000
Boston College +19000
Georgia Tech +25000
Notre Dame +25000
Louisville +25000

I’ll never fully understand odds-makers, but Duke being the slight betting favorite seems, well, odd to me. Granted, the Blue Devils’ odds are just barely better than North Carolina’s, but the Tar Heels claimed the ACC regular-season title by two games.

Additionally, UNC swept Duke in the 2023-24 regular season, including a victory by the Tar Heels at the Blue Devils this past Saturday night.

It’s also “interesting” that Wake Forest has the third-best odds, yet the Demon Deacons are the No. 5 seed. The same goes for Clemson; the Tigers have the fourth-highest odds, while Clemson is the No. 6 seed.

Granted, odds don’t necessarily have to perfectly align with seeding, but that did catch my eye.

By extension, Virginia is the No. 3 seed but has the fifth-best odds. To that end, Pittsburgh is the No. 4 seed yet has the sixth-highest odds.

Virginia Tech checks in as the No. 8 seed while garnering the seventh-best odds.

Finally, our beloved Orange is the No. 7 seed, and N.C. State is the No. 10 seed. These two have the same odds, at No. 8. Makes total sense.