Syracuse basketball vs. Villanova or Ohio St. in latest NIT bracketology projections

Syracuse basketball would have an intriguing initial game in the 2024 NIT, according to the most recent bracketology projections on Saturday.

The Orange is expected to receive a bid to this season's NIT when selections are unveiled on Sunday night.

According to thebarkingcrow.com, the 'Cuse (20-12, 11-9 in the ACC) would face No. 2 seed Villanova in the Providence Region. The Wildcats, a long-time former Big East Conference rival of the Orange, won recent national championships in 2016 and 2018.

The rest of this region is as follows: No. 1 seed Providence versus Boston College, No. 4 seed LSU versus SMU, and No. 3 seed Utah versus UNLV. Providence is another former Big East foe of Syracuse basketball.

Boston College is in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and SMU will move to that league next term. In the non-conference docket of the 2023-24 stanza, the 'Cuse defeated LSU at the JMA Wireless Dome.

Let's look at another NIT bracketology forecast for Syracuse basketball.

Over at the nitbracketology.com on Saturday, the Orange was predicted to battle No. 2 seed Ohio State. I'd like some revenge here, as the 'Cuse fell to the Buckeyes in the Elite Eight of 2012 NCAA Tournament.

Also in this region per nitbracketology.com, No. 1 seed Providence would play Boston College, No. 4 seed Oregon would play San Francisco in a west coast affair, and No. 3 seed Utah would play the University of California, Irvine, in another west coast encounter.

In the non-conference, the Orange defeated Oregon at a neutral site. The Ducks, though, are the No. 4 seed in the Pac-12 Conference Tournament, playing in the championship game at 9 pm on Saturday against No. 3 seed Colorado with an automatic berth to the Big Dance on the line.

In the 2023-24 regular season, the 'Cuse split its two-game set with Boston College, with each squad winning on its home floor.

This regular season, Syracuse basketball reached 20 victories for the first time in a decade. Hoping to make a deep run in this week's ACC Tournament in Washington, D.C., the Orange unfortunately was bounced in the second round this past Wednesday evening.

The No. 10 seed N.C. State, which has journeyed to the final game of the ACC Tournament, where it will face No. 1 seed North Carolina at 8:30 pm on Saturday night, beat the No. 7 seed Syracuse basketball earlier this week by 18 points after going on a massive run in the second half to break open a closely fought contest.

As it pertains to the 2024 NIT, selections will be revealed on Sunday, March 17, beginning at 9:30 pm and airing on ESPN2.