No. 17 Syracuse women’s basketball has had an absolutely dominant season under second-year head coach Felisha Legette-Jack. The Orange are 22-4, including a 12-3 ACC record. If the season ended today, SU would have the two seed in its conference tournament. In ESPN’s Charlie Creme’s latest projected bracket, Syracuse owns a four seed. But can the Orange get any higher?
SU has three games left. Tonight, the ‘Cuse host Duke. The Blue Devils are predicted to receive an eight seed in the NCAA Tournament as of now, so they’re a solid team, but a win doesn’t move the needle too much. On Sunday, SU hosts Pittsburgh, a team towards the bottom of the ACC. However, Syracuse finishes the season on the road against NC State next Thursday. The Wolfpack are the number six team in the country right now, and are a projected two seed in the NCAA Tournament. A road win would provide a huge boost to the Orange’s stock.
If SU wins all three of its remaining regular season games, then it’ll likely move to the cusp of the AP top-ten. That would mean that the Orange would be sitting around a three seed in March Madness.
The ACC Tournament is where Syracuse can really boost into the top echelon of the country. It’s three more games to add to the resume, two of which would likely be against top-25 caliber teams. If the Orange win their conference tournament, then the team should expect another boost to their expected seed. SU would likely be a two seed in March Madness if it wins out.
Why not a one seed? Well, it’s just a really hard group to break into this year. South Carolina is undefeated. Stanford and Ohio State are favorites to win their conferences, and are already in the top-five. Iowa, Texas, and USC all have great resumes. You could absolutely argue Syracuse women’s basketball should be seen in the same tier as these teams already. However, because SU is still just No. 17 right now, it’ll take more than just winning to snag a one seed. It’ll also take some losses by top teams.
A one seed is far from impossible. However, a two-seeded Orange squad would be dangerous, and is probably the more likely result. Plus, why not give Coach Jack, Dyaisha Fair, and the rest of the squad more bulletin board material?
