By Tommy Kane

Published: March 20th, 2018

Volume II: Issue XVIII

The Syracuse Orange went from the last team to make it to the Tournament, to a team that is in the Sweet Sixteen. This miraculous run has knocked off Arizona State, TCU, and Michigan State from contention for the National Championship. What makes it even more miraculous is that Marek Dolezaj, a player that only averages less than five points a game, is scoring in great bunches and becoming the wildcard player for Syracuse. The defense has also been a huge factor for the Orange, limiting opponents that typically score in the 80’s range to scoring in the 50’s range. The three teams that have faced the Orange in the Tourney are scoring 65% of what they typically score in a game! The “Zone” has been cracking down on non-ACC teams in a way that is beyond what was expected. This year’s team is arguably the best defensive team Boeheim has ever had! Fun Fact: Syracuse has been to the Final Four (2013, 2016) in two of their last three Tournament appearances (2013, 2014, 2016). Could they make another run?

The Defense is Literally Killing Opponents:

This version of the “Zone” is detrimental to the success of Syracuse’s opponents in this year’s Tournament. The variations of the 2-3 Zone has always been Boeheim’s specialty, but this year he and this team has taken it to the next level. Arizona State scored 56 points, TCU scored 52 points, and the great Michigan State scored only 53 points! That means Syracuse is allowing an average of 53.6 points in the NCAA Tournament, which is incredible for any team to hold that feat! Arizona State shot 40.4% from the field, TCU shot 39.6% from the field, and the high-powered Michigan State offense only shot 25.8% from the field! It is evident that the “Zone” is only becoming more powerful as Syracuse gains more experience and plays tougher opponents in the Tournament. Many analysts thought that the Orange should have been put in the NIT; they clearly don’t understand that defense can win games in the NCAA, despite being an offensive league. When one of the best three-point shooters (Cassuis Winston) goes 3 for 11 (27.3%) from the three-point line, you know that this defense is a legit threat to the powerhouse offenses such as Duke and Kansas. I believe that the defense will give Duke a difficult time on Friday. If the Orange can force Duke to shoot 35% from the field, they have a shot to win the game. Duke cannot have the shooting woes to start the game like against Rhode Island, because Syracuse is a legit threat on the defensive side of the ball for the Blue Devils.

Offense is at a Stand-still:

You all thought this was going to be a ‘all positive article’, but I still got to grill this awful offense. Syracuse, despite being 3-0 in the NCAA Tournament this year, is doing an awful job on the offensive side of the ball. For starters, they are the lowest scoring team among the Sweet Sixteen, averaging 57.3 points per game. This isn’t the best stat in the world that favors the Cuse, but nonetheless they are still dancing. Against Arizona State, they shot 40.8%. Against TCU, they shot 39.6%, and against Michigan State, they shot 35.7%. These clearly aren’t the best numbers, but the Cuse are still getting it done. As many fans know, Duke has been playing the best defense that they have ever played. They are playing the Zone defense fairly well and Syracuse will need to figure out how to manuever their way though it. If Syracuse is to win the game, they will need to shoot better than they have all Tournament. Tyus Battle and Frank Howard will need to step up for the whole game as well, not just selective parts of the match-up. Overall, offensively Syracuse needs to put up more points and shoot the ball better, especially from three-point territory.

The Verdict? Does the Orange Have a Chance?:

Duke is a tough team, as the Orange lost to them 60-44 on the road earlier this season. With the way Syracuse is playing defense, they should be able to slip their way through this game and on to the Elite Eight. The Orange will have to hope that Duke is having an off night shooting, because in those games the team that has the best defense is favored. The Orange had a much better defense than Michigan State, so they got the job done. The Orange need to rebound the ball and become tougher under the rim without fouling. There was too much over-the-back calls on rebounds that should have been gotten against Michigan State. If the Orange get past the Blue Devils, they will either play #1 Kansas or #5 Clemson, two teams they have played this season. The Orange lost to Kansas, but beat the Tigers. Syracuse would probably hope to face the Tigers, but the Tigers have been playing fairly well in their first two matches and would likely be on a roll after a victory against the #1 seed. All in all, the Orange need to focus on the task at hand, which is beating Duke, before they worry about potential opponents. Besides, the one-game-at-a-time mentality is what got Syracuse to the Final Four two years ago, why not use it again this season? I am not going to write an open apology to the NCAA about the Orange dominating, because they should be writing an apology for doubting us. So I will leave you with this: Never count Jim Boeheim and the Orange out! Make sure to watch the Syracuse vs Duke game on Friday at 9:30ish. Until then, Go Cuse!!!

Stats: http://cuse.com/boxscore.aspx?id=8348&path=mbasket

http://cuse.com/boxscore.aspx?id=8346&path=mbasket

http://cuse.com/boxscore.aspx?id=8343&path=mbasket

http://cuse.com/schedule.aspx?path=mbasket