This Syracuse team gives fans no reason to panic
OK, Syracuse fans. Let's be realistic.
If I had told you prior to the season that the Orange, unranked in the preseason and picked just sixth in the Big East Conference preseason poll, would capture the regular season crown, earn a No. 1 national ranking for the first time in 20 years, finish 28-4, and claim a No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament, you would have called me crazy, or worse.
So, let's just calm down a bit and enjoy what this group has done. Let's look forward to a re-energized Orange team when the NCAA Tournament opens this week, most likely in Buffalo for SU.
A loss at Louisville in the regular-season finale, and then Thursday's disappointing defeat against Georgetown in the Big East quarterfinals, gave SU its first two-game losing streak of the season.
Let's digest that for a moment. It took until the final week of the season for the Orange to lose two in a row with the fifth toughest schedule in the country and in the most difficult conference in the land.
Most teams at this point of the season have had several losing streaks of two or more, and have learned how to cope with the emotions that go along with losing.
Syracuse has not. How it reacts this coming week and re-focuses on what got them here will determine just how far they can go in the Big Dance.
"I can guarantee you this," SU sophomore guard Scoop Jardine said after Thursday's loss. "This team will not feel sorry for itself. We don't like the feeling of losing, so we've got to move forward. We've been great at focusing on one game at a time, and that's what has led to our success. We've won 28 games. All we need to do is win six more."
The overwhelming feeling inside the SU locker room at Madison Square Garden was that this team will have no problem bouncing back and making a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.
"We know we are a very good team. A couple of games doesn't change that," said Big East Sixth Man of the Year Kris Joseph. "Now it's a new season, and we'll take the same attitude we have all season."
And with the good news about Arinze Onuaku's return following a terrible spill in New York, the Orange still has all the right pieces to produce a national champion.
Senior co-captain Andy Rautins put SU's immediate future in the right perspective.
"The most important part of the year is here," he said. "We've put ourselves in a great position to make a long NCAA Tournament run. It's time to come together like we've been doing all season. I have all the faith in the world in this bunch of guys. We've accomplished too much to just let it slip away."
And although losing is never good, especially to an ultracompetitive man like SU coach Jim Boeheim, Thursday's defeat may not have been the worst thing to happen to the Orange.
As it turns out, the extra rest should help Onuaku recover quicker from the right quadriceps injury he suffered while trying to block a Greg Monroe shot with five minutes left in Thursday's game.
It will also allow Boeheim to possibly incorporate freshman center DaShonte Riley and freshman guard Mookie Jones back into his rotation.
Neither played in New York after Onuaku went down, but both will be given a long look as Boeheim decides whether Onuaku will be ready. Riley has played only sparingly in his rookie season, while Jones hasn't played since fracturing the ring finger on his right (shooting) hand during a practice on Jan. 31.
"I'm ready to go and contribute," Jones said Thursday. "The hand is feeling a lot better."
A likely scenario is that Boeheim will rest Onuaku against SU's first-round NCAA opponent, which will likely be a No. 16 seed. Joseph will be inserted into the starting lineup. That's not a big deal because he is like another starter and has played the third most minutes on the team behind Wes Johnson and Rautins.
"Whatever role coach wants me to play," Joseph said. "We need Arinze to make a long run in the NCAA Tournament, so we're just hoping he comes back at full strength."
You could just tell by their words that the Orange were ready to say goodbye to the Big East and move on to a fresh opponent in the NCAA Tournament.
"It's such a grind in this league, and teams know each other so well," Rautins said. "Especially playing a team like Georgetown three times. Coaches are so great about making adjustments because they've seen us so often. In the NCAA Tournament, that's a lot harder."
If SU claims a No. 1 NCAA seed today, it would be the first time since 1980 when the Orange were the top seed in the East Region. SU earned a first-round bye then beat Villanova in the second round at Providence, R.I. That season ended with a loss to Iowa in the regional semifinals in Philadelphia.
And for those SU history buffs who are paying attention, SU lost in the semifinals of the 2003 Big East Tournament before making its run to the school's first NCAA championship. That was seven years ago.
And seven years before that? SU made it all the way to the championship game as a No. 4 seed before losing to Kentucky in 1996.
Sportswriter John Day covers Syracuse University men's basketball for the Times. You may reach him at jday@wdt.net
