By Kevin Lonnquist
Publisher
On a day when Baylor celebrated wearing its green, the Bears learned late Sunday afternoon that the primary color they had to worry about is Orange.
For the eighth time in the last 12 seasons and the 13th time in school history, Baylor is in the NCAA tournament. The Bears (19-13) will travel to the West Region as the No. 9 seed and face No. 8 Syracuse (20-13) Thursday in Salt Lake City (8:57 pm; TruTV). The winner has a potential meeting with No. 1 Gonzaga in the second round on Saturday.
This is the third time the two programs have ever met. Syracuse won the first two meetings. The Orange won in Syracuse, 94-71, on Dec. 16, 2006, and SU won 74-67 in the 2013 Maui Invitational championship game on Nov. 27, 2013.
Here’s a breakdown of the Orange under the direction of Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim who is in his 41st season. Boeheim, 74, has spent his entire career at Syracuse.
This is Syracuse’s 40th appearance in the NCAA tournament and the 33rd under Boeheim. The Orange have been to the Final Four in 1987, 1996, 2003, 2013, and 2016. It won the 2003 National Championship.
In 2018-19 Syracuse finished fifth in the AAC and went 1-1 in the ACC tournament. It defeated Pittsburgh in the second round and lost to Duke in the quarterfinals.
About Syracuse’s season
Like Baylor, the Orange have had some very impressive wins that were offset by some really bad losses.
For instance, Syracuse lost to one-time rival and now struggling UConn. It also had a really bad loss to Georgia Tech in the Carrier Dome. There were also losses to NCAA tournament bound teams but non-P5 teams in Buffalo and Old Dominion.
However, this program probably turned in the eye-opening win of the year when they won at Duke, 95-91, in overtime Jan. 14 at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Known for its patented 2-3 zone defense, the Orange played it to a point where opponents shot only 39.7 percent for the season and 32.3 percent from 3-point range. Syracuse also forced an average of more than 15 turnovers and collected eight steals per game.
What caused this season to be up and down is that the Orange is not a good shooting team. It shot just 42.4 percent for the season and 33 percent from long distance. Syracuse can also be had on the glass as it was outrebounded by an average of nearly three per game.
At his Sunday presser, Boeheim told reporters that leading scorer, junior Tyus Battle, should be ready to play on Thursday. Battle had missed the last two games because of a back injury. Battle averages 17.2 points per game and shooting 42 percent from long distance. Sophomore forward Oshae Brissett is the most physical player on the team at 12.4 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.
Senior Frank Howard has been running the point and nearly has a 1.5-1.0 assists to turnover ratio. He made headlines the wrong way in the AAC tournament when he was accused of deliberately trying to trip and injure Duke’s Zion Williamson in the quarterfinal matchup. Williamson was returning from a knee injury.
Of course, the most traumatic part of Syracuse’s season was on Feb. 20. Following a 69-49 win over Louisville, Boeheim was driving home when he struck and killed a pedestrian. Police ruled it an accident. Boeheim wasn’t charged.
Something in Common
Baylor and Syracuse have one common opponent: Oregon
The Orange lost in Eugene, 80-65, on Nov. 16. Baylor beat the Ducks in Waco, 57-47, on Dec. 21.
Against the NCAA field
Syracuse is 4-9 against those headed to the NCAA tournament. The Orange is 1-2 against Duke. Its other wins are against Louisville, Colgate and Ohio State. The other losses are to North Carolina, Virginia, Oregon, Buffalo, Old Dominion, Florida State and Virginia Tech.
Key Stat
Syracuse averages 18.3 points off turnovers per game
Publisher
On a day when Baylor celebrated wearing its green, the Bears learned late Sunday afternoon that the primary color they had to worry about is Orange.
For the eighth time in the last 12 seasons and the 13th time in school history, Baylor is in the NCAA tournament. The Bears (19-13) will travel to the West Region as the No. 9 seed and face No. 8 Syracuse (20-13) Thursday in Salt Lake City (8:57 pm; TruTV). The winner has a potential meeting with No. 1 Gonzaga in the second round on Saturday.
This is the third time the two programs have ever met. Syracuse won the first two meetings. The Orange won in Syracuse, 94-71, on Dec. 16, 2006, and SU won 74-67 in the 2013 Maui Invitational championship game on Nov. 27, 2013.
Here’s a breakdown of the Orange under the direction of Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim who is in his 41st season. Boeheim, 74, has spent his entire career at Syracuse.
This is Syracuse’s 40th appearance in the NCAA tournament and the 33rd under Boeheim. The Orange have been to the Final Four in 1987, 1996, 2003, 2013, and 2016. It won the 2003 National Championship.
In 2018-19 Syracuse finished fifth in the AAC and went 1-1 in the ACC tournament. It defeated Pittsburgh in the second round and lost to Duke in the quarterfinals.
About Syracuse’s season
Like Baylor, the Orange have had some very impressive wins that were offset by some really bad losses.
For instance, Syracuse lost to one-time rival and now struggling UConn. It also had a really bad loss to Georgia Tech in the Carrier Dome. There were also losses to NCAA tournament bound teams but non-P5 teams in Buffalo and Old Dominion.
However, this program probably turned in the eye-opening win of the year when they won at Duke, 95-91, in overtime Jan. 14 at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Known for its patented 2-3 zone defense, the Orange played it to a point where opponents shot only 39.7 percent for the season and 32.3 percent from 3-point range. Syracuse also forced an average of more than 15 turnovers and collected eight steals per game.
What caused this season to be up and down is that the Orange is not a good shooting team. It shot just 42.4 percent for the season and 33 percent from long distance. Syracuse can also be had on the glass as it was outrebounded by an average of nearly three per game.
At his Sunday presser, Boeheim told reporters that leading scorer, junior Tyus Battle, should be ready to play on Thursday. Battle had missed the last two games because of a back injury. Battle averages 17.2 points per game and shooting 42 percent from long distance. Sophomore forward Oshae Brissett is the most physical player on the team at 12.4 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.
Senior Frank Howard has been running the point and nearly has a 1.5-1.0 assists to turnover ratio. He made headlines the wrong way in the AAC tournament when he was accused of deliberately trying to trip and injure Duke’s Zion Williamson in the quarterfinal matchup. Williamson was returning from a knee injury.
Of course, the most traumatic part of Syracuse’s season was on Feb. 20. Following a 69-49 win over Louisville, Boeheim was driving home when he struck and killed a pedestrian. Police ruled it an accident. Boeheim wasn’t charged.
Something in Common
Baylor and Syracuse have one common opponent: Oregon
The Orange lost in Eugene, 80-65, on Nov. 16. Baylor beat the Ducks in Waco, 57-47, on Dec. 21.
Against the NCAA field
Syracuse is 4-9 against those headed to the NCAA tournament. The Orange is 1-2 against Duke. Its other wins are against Louisville, Colgate and Ohio State. The other losses are to North Carolina, Virginia, Oregon, Buffalo, Old Dominion, Florida State and Virginia Tech.
Key Stat
Syracuse averages 18.3 points off turnovers per game
