When a season has gone this awry for a team like Syracuse, it’s hard to see any sort of silver lining or feel positive about something SU’s way. You would hope that in a struggling season, you at least see some flashes in the pan that make you happy to be a fan of a program moving forward. But that right there has been the biggest issue: Syracuse basketball this season has shown those flashes, but can never build off of them.
It feels right to bring this up now because of last night when the Orange squeaked past Florida State 66-62 in the first round of the ACC Tournament. Winning that matchup is a confidence boost no doubt, but it also sets up a rematch with SMU tonight at 9:30, who SU arguably should have beaten last week. There’s so many good things to take from a win like the one last night, but can Syracuse carry it over?
I mean just look at the box score. J.J. Starling had one of the most efficient games we’ve seen from him all season, scoring 27 points and shooting 12-23 from the field (still a lot of shots.) Around him, Eddie Lampkin was on his game (14 points, 6 rebounds,) and even Jyare Davis had a solid night. All year, it’s seemed like a broken record for Syracuse basketball. When one thing is going well, something else has to suffer in return. It’s not crazy to say that we have not seen Syracuse men’s basketball at total and complete strength at any point this season.
Which is the most frustrating thing. This team certainly has talent on it, and it’s showed that it has the ability to get it done in big games. But why can’t it happen on a consistent basis? Where is the issue that forces J.J. Starling to be great from the field one night and then anemic the next? Maybe playing back-to-backs from here on out in the tournament could help that, but it’s extremely frustrating to see this Syracuse team find success and then completely lose it the next game. At this point, it’s do-or-die for a lot of this team, and that will to push forward is put to the test against the Mustangs tonight.
