Syracuse women's basketball took a tough loss at Notre Dame on Thursday night, although the Orange should still be safe for the 2026 NCAA Tournament, at least for now.
The Orange fell to the Fighting Irish on the road, 72-62. SU's 2025-26 regular-season finale is on Sunday against Boston College at the JMA Wireless Dome. The Eagles (5-25 overall, 1-16 in ACC) are not a good team, and hopefully, the 'Cuse will handle its business on senior day.
Assuming Sunday afternoon's Atlantic Coast Conference contest is a victory for the Orange, Syracuse women's basketball will wrap up the 2025-26 regular season at 22-7 overall and 12-6 in league play. That's a solid record.
The ACC Tournament on the women's side will run from March 4 to March 8 at the Gas South Arena in Duluth, Ga., near Atlanta. It will be helpful for the Orange's post-season resume if SU could win at least a game or two in the ACC Tournament to feel good about hearing its name called on Selection Sunday, which is on March 15.
Bracketology projections for Syracuse women's basketball.
The Orange's NCAA NET ranking, as of February 25, stood at No. 40. It doesn't yet include the team's setback at Notre Dame. This NET rating for SU is okay, but not great. The main issue for Syracuse women's basketball is that it is just 1-6 in quadrant-one games. The 'Cuse is 5-1 in quadrant two, 3-0 in quadrant and 12-0 in quadrant four.
In essence, the Orange is struggling against tougher competition, while beating up on lower-quality foes. However, in the upcoming ACC Tournament, which is at a neutral site, the 'Cuse could have some chances to land more quadrant-one or quadrant-two triumphs.
Here are some recent bracketology forecasts for the Orange related to the 2026 Big Dance, but they don't factor in Thursday evening's loss to the Fighting Irish on the road:
CBS Sports: No. 8 seed
ESPN: No. 9 seed
Her Hoop Stats: No. 9 seed
USA Today: No. 11 seed
From my perspective, the 'Cuse simply has to beat Boston College, and then win at least one game in the ACC Tournament, to be a virtual lock for this spring's March Madness, which would be a wonderful accomplishment for head coach Felisha Legette-Jack and her program.