Syracuse basketball welcomes N.C. State to the Hill on Wednesday night, and the Orange is a slight betting favorite in this Atlantic Coast Conference contest.
When I wrote this article on Wednesday morning, per FanDuel, the 'Cuse was favored by 1.5 points, with the over/under set at 143.5 points.
Additionally, ESPN Analytics gives the Orange a 55.9 percent chance to prevail over the Wolfpack in an encounter that pits two of the ACC's worst teams against one another on Wednesday evening.
Syracuse basketball (11-16, 5-11 in the ACC) has four games left in the 2024-25 regular season before the ACC Tournament commences next month in Charlotte, N.C. Following the league's expansion to 18 members in basketball in 2024-25, only the top 15 schools will qualify for this annual event.
If the Orange hopes to reach the ACC Tournament, knocking off N.C. State (11-16, 4-12 in the ACC) on Wednesday is critical. Both squads are hovering near that No. 15 spot.
Syracuse basketball is a slight favorite at home versus N.C. State.
On Wednesday, the 'Cuse had an NCAA NET ranking of No. 146 overall, as compared to No. 119 for the Wolfpack, making this a quadrant-three affair for the Orange.
Per the NCAA's Web site, N.C. State is 0-8 in true road games so far during the 2024-25 campaign. In the current term, meanwhile, Syracuse basketball is 9-6 overall in contests held at the JMA Wireless Dome.
Here is the Orange's 2024-25 resume in the four quadrants that are part of the NET ratings:
Quadrant One: 0-8
Quadrant Two: 1-6
Quadrant Three: 4-2
Quadrant Four: 6-0
The fact that Syracuse basketball is just 1-14 in combined quadrant one/quadrant two encounters in 2024-25 pretty much sums up the program's current season. The 'Cuse simply can't beat higher-quality foes that it has faced to date in 2024-25.
Now, the Orange has had to deal with several unfortunate injuries. But all squads have to contend with this. And while it's also true that the 'Cuse has hung tough with some of these better opponents, Syracuse basketball hasn't shown, much at all, that it can close out games when playing these top-flight teams, and this also comes in a stanza where the ACC lags far behind several other power conferences.
If you'd like more information on how to watch the Orange host N.C. State on Wednesday night, click on this article.