Photo Credit: Syracuse.com
Once the predicted overall number one seed, Syracuse is now struggling just to win a game. The Orange lost their fourth game out of their last five and are starting to fall in the rankings. Losing to an unranked Georgia Tech team last night, could push Syracuse out of the top ten; they currently sit at the seventh ranked team in the country.
Head coach Jim Boeheim vented his frustration after the loss, but tried to look at the positives instead of the obvious negatives. “I’m not happy with tonight, but I’m very happy to be 26-4. We’re well ahead of predictions. We just have to regroup, ” he said.
CJ Fair has continued to play at a high level despite his team slumping. Fair matched his career-high 28 points, but it was not enough for the Orange to win. One major issue for Syracuse is the loss of their lead rebounder Jerami Grant. Grant sat out this game after experiencing back pain.
Syracuse has been in close games all season with miracle finishes that kept them undefeated. Now, they are still staying with their opponent, except for the game against Virginia, but are unable to get that same magic they had at the beginning of the season. This team just needs to take a breather and refocus on the tournament. They have the coaching and talent to make it very far and just look like a tired, worn down team. Syracuse can easily turn this around, but they need to do fast.
