Getty Syracuse Orange guard Tyus Battle
As the 2018-19 college basketball regular season winds down, the chatter around bracketology and each team’s chances to make the NCAA Tournament heats up. And one team who’s taken center stage is the Syracuse Orange, but as things currently stand, there’s a reason for optimism. The Orange find themselves in a crowded and loaded ACC, but they’ve managed to find success.
Syracuse enters a matchup with the No. 2 ranked Virginia Cavaliers with a 19-10 record and a 10-6 mark in ACC play. Their double-digit wins in conference play are crucial, especially considering that they currently sit ahead of the Louisville Cardinals, NC State Wolfpack and Clemson Tigers.
We’re going to take a look at the latest on the bracketology outlook for Syracuse, along with their resume and a few key wins and losses that stand out.
Syracuse NCAA Tournament Resume
If Orange fans are looking for more additional good news, consider the fact that they don’t have many “terrible” losses. Falling to a mediocre Connecticut Huskies team isn’t great and losing at home against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets was an ugly one, but the positive outweighs the negative.
Virtually every one of their other losses is forgivable. Aside from Georgia Tech, Syracuse has dropped games against Virginia Tech, Florida State, NC State, Duke, and UNC in conference play. Each of those teams is either bound for the tournament or on the fringe of making it in.
Going one step further, Syracuse defeated Duke, Louisville, Clemson, Ohio State, and Georgetown. The victories over the Buckeyes and Hoyas are fairly crucial, as both teams are largely considered as bubble teams at this point.
Syracuse Bracketology Breakdown
A number of analysts and sites have differing opinions on how things look for the Orange at this point, but most point to them being in the NCAA Tournament. ESPN’s John Gasaway pegged Syracuse as a team who “should be in,” stating that it would take something big to drop them below a No. 8 or 9 seed.
Syracuse now has something of a floor beneath its projected No. 8 or 9 seed. Barring the most calamitous outings at home against Virginia and/or on the road at Clemson, it’s unlikely that the Orange’s seed will fall significantly or even at all.
Gasaway also cites that they could improve their bracket position by knocking off one or both of Virginia and Clemson in the final two games. The latest bracketology from ESPN’s Joe Lunardi currently lists Syracuse as a No. 8 seed in the Midwest with an opening-round matchup against the Texas Longhorns.
Going along with a similar outlook provided by Lunardi, Jerry Palm of CBS Sports provided the prediction of a No. 8 seed as well for the Orange. He has them in the Midwest region also with an opening-round date against the St. John’s Red Storm. Interestingly, a victory in that matchup according to this breakdown would likely lead to a date with the Tennessee Volunteers.
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