Did that really happen? Did Syracuse really beat West Virginia or was it all a dream? I still can’t believe they beat San Diego State. Gill gross and I talked this afternoon about how Syracuse keeps on pulling upsets in March, make sure to give that a listen:
Rest-assured going forward, do not, and I can’t stress this enough, do not sleep on the Orange. Jim Boeheim’s bunch came out last Friday at Hinkle Fieldhouse and shocked the nation. Buddy Boeheim was on fire and the rest of the team followed suit in the first half of the game opposing the Mountaineers. Joe Girard had his best game all season on Sunday, 12 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, talk about a stat sheet stuffer. Orange fans should have a ton of confidence in this team going into Saturday’s matchup with Houston. It is pretty surprising, however, that they’ve gotten to this point. Here’s what I’m most surprised about looking back on the season as a whole:
It seems like a cop-out answer, but Buddy’s play has been UNREAL.
This year there were points where plenty of people, myself included were ready to make the judgment that the coach’s son had taken a step back this season. Orange fans probably don’t forget but those of you who are new to this team might not know that the junior had nine games this season where he shot below 30% from behind the arc. That number seems incomprehensible when gazing at his numbers during the month of March. Buddy has made a real improvement and has quite frankly put this team in the spot they’re in. His bouts with COVID earlier this year were obviously a huge factor in his ebbs during the regular season, but at times it also seemed like he just didn’t have. Those times most notably being the three games this year where he combined for a staggering 0 of 16 from distance (@Pitt, Buffalo, Northeastern). If I was told he’d be putting up the kinds of numbers he is right now back when this team was struggling in January I would’ve been speechless. Needless to say, I’m quite surprised. 
This team has a real chance to make a trip to the Elite 8. Stay locked here as well as our Twitter, @OrangeFizz, where Gill Gross and I will keep you updated on all things Syracuse and all things Indianapolis throughout the week. We’ll have another FizzCast ready for you tomorrow, stay tuned.
