By now, Syracuse has gotten comfortable playing on the bubble. When Syracuse’s season seemed to be over the Orange won five in a row. Once SU had beaten three top 10 teams, the Orange¬†lost¬†just enough to keep things interesting. That trend continued with another loss in the ACC Tournament to Miami Wednesday. Syracuse still hasn’t won an ACC Tournament game since joining the conference four years ago, and now there aren’t any more games on the schedule for Syracuse to boost its resume. Has the Orange done enough?
Syracuse has some of the most impressive wins in the country. Miami. Florida State. Virginia. Duke. On the bubble or not, not many teams in college basketball can say they have beaten those teams. That, plus the run Syracuse made last season, has some thinking the Orange is prime to bust more brackets this time around.
Word to Cuse naysayers about them being on Bubble after @theACC L to Miami / forget it SYRACUSE is going dancing !
— Dick Vitale (@DickieV) March 8, 2017
The Cuse on The Bubble. Where have I heard that before? They'll get in and they'll be a tough out, as usual. #Syracuse
— Mike Greenberg (@Espngreeny) March 8, 2017
Am keeping Syracuse in the projected NCAA field despite today's loss. Next up, can Clemson keep its NCAA hopes… https://t.co/0lYhESCFWl
— Joe Lunardi (@ESPNLunardi) March 8, 2017
Even our fearless leader blessed us with his take on the matter:
Personally, I think the top 10 wins, record in a brutal ACC & brand will carry #Syracuse in. But I sure wouldn't sleep well until Sunday.
— Damon Amendolara (@DAonCBS) March 8, 2017
There has been a lot of love for the Orange this season, certainly more than last year’s team. Maybe it’s the way the Orange has won its games, but more people seem to be on the Syracuse bandwagon this time around. Still, with SU’s RPI there are skeptics.
Joe Lunardi: I still have Syracuse in the Field of 68
Me: pic.twitter.com/mqsVgK2elA— Derek Kessinger (@DSuave_12) March 8, 2017
Syracuse goes down. No matter what Lunardi says, they're not solidly in. RPI of 79 before losing today.
— Chad Leistikow (@ChadLeistikow) March 8, 2017
Joe Lunardi still had Syracuse in the NCAA Tournament after the loss to Miami, but SU did fall to the bracketologist’s Last Four In. Depending on the number of upsets in the smaller conference tournaments, Syracuse could be close enough to the edge to be pushed off. Maybe Syracuse fans were a little optimistic by saying Syracuse was already in after beating Duke,¬†but should Orange fans really be worried about being beat out by Rhode Island?
There seems to be two sides to the argument. The Cuse fans cite Syracuse’s big wins and record in the nation’s best conference as reasons you can’t keep the Orange out of March Madness, while the naysayers point to SU’s early losses, RPI and strength of schedule. Last year, the selection committee gave Syracuse a bid when most Orange fans weren’t expecting one. This year SU fans are more optimistic, but nobody will tell you that before Sunday.
Posted: Nathan Dickinson
