Why Syracuse presents a tricky start to Notre Dame stretch run
Any veteran ACC coach can tell you the Syracuse scouting report.
Forty minutes of zone defense. A backcourt with at least one guard unafraid to hoist three-pointers and meet the moment.
The Orange are unmistakably themselves and don’t hide it. They’ll make you spend long hours fine-tuning zone offense and devising ways to slow down their shooters. But there are answers and popular tactics after 46 years scouting Jim Boeheim’s teams. The book on how opponents have vanquished Syracuse has a few chapters.
There is, though, one tenant of recent Syracuse outfits for which there is no scouting report or antidote.
Desperate energy.
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You can’t scheme against it. You can’t control it, really. And many years around Feb. 1, it seems to kick in for the Orange. Opposing coaches who see them on their team’s February schedule surely grumble in acknowledgement.
This year is the latest iteration. Syracuse sat at 9-11 and 3-6 in the ACC after a Jan. 25 loss to Pittsburgh. The Orange have won six of seven since, a stretch started with a victory over Wake Forest. They’ll take their good vibes to South Bend Wednesday (7 p.m. ET, ESPNews) for their lone scheduled meeting with Notre Dame.
“They’re coming in feeling good about themselves,” Mike Brey said. “They’re really gifted.”
Brey and the Irish find themselves up against a Syracuse late-season surge for the second straight year. Last season, they were a victim of the Orange’s 5-2 finish to the regular season that vaulted them from barely on the NCAA tournament bubble to safely in the field. Back in 2016, a Jan. 28 win over Notre Dame was Syracuse’s launching point for a Final Four run birthed from a 3-5 start in ACC play.
So, yeah, don’t let the middling record this year lead you astray. Notre Dame knows what’s coming not only Wednesday, but the rest of the regular season – even as they finish with three home games in four outings against teams outside the top six of the ACC standings.
“Every game we have is going to be a hard game,” Brey said. “I don’t care what the record is of the team in the league. Boston College last week – hard. Georgia Tech, when we played them in Atlanta, we escaped.”
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Notre Dame (19-8, 12-4 ACC) has plenty of momentum itself, even after a 79-74 loss Saturday at Wake Forest. The Irish are still in most projected NCAA tournament fields and remain alone in second place in the conference. They have taken just three losses since Dec. 20 and haven’t dropped back-to-back games since the week after Thanksgiving. Those three defeats have barely been speed bumps.
“After losses, we’ve had six-, five- and four-game win-streaks,” Brey said. “We’ve been really good and matter-of-fact about getting back on track.”
There’s an urgency and energy around Rolfs Hall too. The program’s first NCAA tournament appearance since 2017 is firmly in view with a favorable on-paper path to locking up a spot. Winning the final four regular-season games might do it.
“We know we have to finish strong,” guard Dane Goodwin said, “come Selection Sunday.”
Notre Dame (19-8, 12-4 ACC) vs. Syracuse (15-12, 9-7)
When: Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022 at 7 p.m. ET
Where: Purcell Pavilion
TV: ESPNews
Radio: Notre Dame basketball radio network
Line: Notre Dame -5
KenPom prediction: Notre Dame 76, Syracuse 72
Series history: Syracuse leads 31-22
Last meeting: Syracuse won 75-67 on Feb. 20, 2021
Leading scorers:
• Syracuse: guard Buddy Boeheim (19.7 ppg), guard Joe Girard III (13.7 ppg)
• Notre Dame: guard Blake Wesley (14.7 ppg), Dane Goodwin (14.6 ppg)
Other notes:
• Notre Dame forward Nate Laszewski will be a game-time decision due to a stomach virus, Brey said.
• Syracuse will not have starting center Jesse Edwards for the season due to a broken wrist suffered Feb. 19. Edwards averaged 12.4 points and 2.8 blocks in 24 games this season. The latter ranks 12th nationally, and his 69.5 field goal percentage is fifth.
• Wesley is shooting 12-of-21 on three-pointers in his last three games. He made six against Wake Forest and five in a Feb. 12 win over Clemson. Prior to the Clemson game, he had one game with four made triples – the opener vs. Cal State Northridge.
• As is customary for its 2-3 zone, Syracuse ranks near the bottom in opponent three-point volume and assist rate. Opposing offenses have taken 49.5 percent of their shots from three-point range, second-highest in the country. The Orange’s 69.8 opponent assist rate is last in the country. Notre Dame ranks in the top-100 in three-point volume and assist rate this season. The Irish are shooting 38.6 percent on threes in ACC play this year, second behind Virginia Tech.
• Syracuse is 197th in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom, and is on track to finish outside the top 100 for the second time in three years. The Orange were 89th in defensive efficiency on Selection Sunday last year before their Sweet 16 run boosted it to 77th.
• Syracuse ranks 14th nationally in three-point percentage (37.8) and has three players shooting at least 39 percent from beyond the arc. Buddy Boeheim has attempted a team-high 216 threes, but is shooting just 33.8.
• Notre Dame turned the ball over on 20.9 percent of its possessions in the loss to Wake Forest, its third-worst turnover rate this year. The Irish also allowed a season-worst 39 percent opponent offensive rebounding rate.
