UConn-Duke's March classic conjures up memories of Syracuse over UVA in 2016 Elite Eight

This has nothing to do with Syracuse basketball, per se, but yet, it has a thing (or two) to do with our beloved Orange, which hopefully next season, under new head coach Gerry McNamara, will snap its five-year drought of missing out on March Madness.

The scene was set on Sunday in Washington, D.C., our nation's capital and my hometown. The East Region of the 2026 NCAA Tournament. Heavyweight college basketball programs duking it out (no pun intended) in the Elite Eight.

No. 1 seed (and the Big Dance's No. 1 overall seed) Duke against No. 2 seed UConn. The Blue Devils have won five national championships. The Huskies have claimed six national titles, including recent ones in 2023 and 2024.

Duke was in control on Sunday evening in D.C. The Blue Devils led by 19 points in the first half. They led by 15 points at the break and, as ESPN noted, No. 1 seeds were an astounding 134-0 when leading by 15 or more points at halftime.

Make that 134-1 now. UConn clawed back, as head coach Dan Hurley discussed Monday morning on ESPN's "Get Up" program. The Huskies hoped to "put some game pressure" on the Blue Devils to give UConn a shot to try and steal it at the end.

Which the Huskies, in fact, did. A free throw by UConn with 10 seconds left trimmed its deficit to 72-70. The Huskies pressed and deflected a Duke pass. UConn got the ball, and freshman guard Braylon Mullins swished in a 35-footer right before the buzzer to give the Huskies a 73-72 triumph and a spot in the Final Four.

Duke against UConn, in some ways, reminds me of Syracuse basketball versus Virginia, a decade ago.

Naturally, this outcome resulted in many folks opining on social media that Mullins' shot will go down as one of the most dramatic buzzer-beating moments in men's NCAA Tournament history, along with Duke's Christian Laettner stunning Kentucky in the 1992 Elite Eight, Laettner beating UConn in the 1990 Elite Eight and Villanova's Kris Jenkins making a 3-pointer to win the 2016 chip over North Carolina, among others.

For me, as a Syracuse basketball fanatic, Sunday's epic showdown between Connecticut and Duke brought me back to the 2013 Elite Eight between the Orange and Marquette, along with SU's 2016 Elite Eight encounter with Virginia.

In 2013, the East Region was played in D.C. Syracuse was the No. 4 seed, and it faced No. 3 seed Marquette for a spot in the Final Four. I was at that game in person, and I've never screamed so hard - and happily - in my life, save for when the Orange won the grand prize in April of 2003.

In that East Regional final, Syracuse basketball clamped down on the Golden Eagles on defense to prevail, 55-39. Good freaking times.

More relevant to the Blue Devils-Huskies, though, is what No. 10 seed Syracuse basketball achieved against No. 1 seed Virginia in the Elite Eight of the 2016 Big Dance, from the Midwest Region. The Orange found itself down "only" 14 points at the break, 35-21.

With 9:33 to go in the second half, UVA held a commanding edge of 54-39. I was despondent. No worries, however. Then-head coach Jim Boeheim employed an effective full-court press to speed up Virginia, and freshman wing Malachi Richardson went nuts in the second half.

Syracuse basketball ended the game on a 29-8 run to win, 68-62, and advance to the Final Four. The Orange's victory was magical, even if the 'Cuse didn't get a game-winning shot at the buzzer, as UConn did this past Sunday in our nation's capital.

Still, these are two phenomenal comebacks in the Elite Eight versus No. 1 seeds - a mere 10 years apart.