Men's Basketball

Beat writers undecided if Syracuse can defeat Notre Dame

Courtesy of Rich Barnes | USA Today Sports

Joe Girard III shot 7-of-13 from the field in Syracuse's game against Boston College.

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Syracuse hosts Notre Dame in the Carrier Dome on Saturday after SU won its last game against Boston College. The matchup is the first of four regular season games that remain before the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. 

Syracuse’s matchup with Louisville, also a regular season game, was postponed Wednesday due to COVID-19 within the Cardinals program. Head coach Jim Boeheim called the postponement a “missed opportunity,” noting that SU had two strong practices and felt ready to face the Cardinals.

Here’s what our beat writers think will happen when Notre Dame (9-10, 6-7 ACC) visits Syracuse (12-6, 6-5) on Saturday at 2 p.m.:

Andrew Crane (12-6)
That’ll do it
Notre Dame 82, Syracuse 80



Danny brings up a good point down in his blurb: Everyone was so worried about Syracuse getting Quadrant 1 wins, finding ways to boost a resume that may be beyond boostable, that it’s easy to overlook an opponent like Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish have an extremely efficient offense, one that’s only lost two games over the last month — one of which was a two-point loss to Georgia Tech on the road.

The Orange have been strong at home this season, even though most of the games have been close, but Notre Dame’s efficiency on offense will eventually overtake SU’s poor shot selection at times. Syracuse will need its guards to convert early and often on jump shots, so look for this to turn into a high-scoring game before UND finds a way to have one more successful possession at the end.

Anthony Dabbundo (14-4)
Luck of the Irish
Syracuse 81, Notre Dame 75

Notre Dame’s 3-point shooting ability has the potential to make this game difficult for Syracuse. The Orange have defended the 3 relatively well, but most of their opponents haven’t been particularly good at shooting. The Irish rank 27th in 3-point shooting percentage, which is the second-best shooting team SU has faced. While ND has the shooting, they don’t have much size or rebounding ability. The Orange have been very successful this season when they haven’t been dominated on the glass, and the Irish are not a team built to exploit Syracuse’s interior weakness.

The ND defense doesn’t force turnovers and doesn’t get enough stops to keep up with the Orange. Quincy Guerrier has one of his best games of the season with a double-double, and SU takes care of the Irish in a can’t-lose home game. 

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Danny Emerman (13-5)
Irish goodbye
Notre Dame 79, Syracuse 71

Syracuse was expected to play Louisville in a massive, Quadrant 1 tilt on Wednesday. But COVID-19 within Louisville’s program postponed the contest, erasing what could’ve been a season-changing win. 

Instead, the Irish are going to come into the Carrier Dome and disrupt SU’s season. Notre Dame has an elite offense and can shoot the lights out. It’s going to be a high-scoring affair between two middling defensive teams, but ND can get hot from deep and stretch out the Orange’s zone. Prentiss Hubb, Dane Goodwin and Nate Laszewski are all capable shooters, presenting threats from all over the arc. Teams haven’t shot particularly well from 3 against SU all year, so some regression is past due.

All eyes were on Louisville, but the Irish can fly under the radar and play spoiler. The Orange will be essentially done without even saying goodbye.

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