The 1984 championship game against Georgetown, the six-overtime game against Connecticut and Gerry McNamara’s string of heroics — all precious memories from the Big East tournament, which Syracuse fans grew accustomed to watching each March.

This year the stage is different. Madison Square Garden to Greensboro, N.C. Old-time Big East rivals to new Atlantic Coast Conference foes.

Despite the change in scenery, though, the goal remains the same for Syracuse — to come away with a championship.

“We’re playing in a big-time tournament,” SU head coach Jim Boeheim said on the ACC coaches’ teleconference, “a really good tournament.”

No. 11 Syracuse (27-4, 14-4 ACC) will try to win a title in its first-ever ACC tournament. The Orange faces North Carolina State (20-12, 9-9) — a team that nearly beat SU a month ago — on Friday at 7 p.m. on ESPN, for a chance to bolt into the semifinals and help its NCAA Tournament stock.

Boeheim said it doesn’t matter where the conference tournament is. His players will still be jazzed up and focused regardless of the location.

“We’re looking forward to the challenge,” Boeheim said. “What’s always important when you play in a tournament is that they have a basketball court and an arena, and they’ve got that in Greensboro so we’re looking forward to the competition there.”

While the Big East tradition is etched in history, SU will look to add to its legacy in the ACC and foster new rivalries against schools like Duke and North Carolina this weekend. Though the vibe is certainly different, the players feel the excitement is still there.

“We’re looking forward to it,” SU guard Trevor Cooney said. “Obviously this is our first time going down there. We want to go down there and win it.”

When it plays N.C. State, Syracuse will have Jerami Grant at close to 100 percent for the second consecutive game. Grant missed all of one game and part of two due to a sore back, but he was effective in SU’s 74-58 win over Florida State, notching 16 points and eight rebounds.

With Grant back, Rakeem Christmas and Keita face less of a burden. Inexperienced freshman Tyler Roberson doesn’t have to start. Michael Gbinije doesn’t have to play on the wing as much.

“I can play different positions,” Grant said on Cuse.com, “allowing other people to play their natural position. I definitely feel like that’s one of the reasons (Boeheim) likes to put me on the court.”

Though Grant is healthy, a rematch with Duke in the semifinals isn’t guaranteed.

One challenge the Orange will face in its first go-around down south is the daunting task of playing an N.C. State team that has already played a game in the tournament. Though lower seeds are worse on paper, Boeheim said statistics have shown that the double bye wasn’t always helpful in the Big East.

Teams that play one or two games and get into a rhythm have an excellent chance to stage an upset, Boeheim said. Just because you’re the higher seed, doesn’t mean you’re invincible.

“The percentages should be completely the other way because you’re playing one of the top seeds,” Boeheim said. “If the percentages held up, those teams would win the vast majority of the time, and that’s not the case.”

Syracuse will face the challenge of avoiding that trap against the Wolfpack. The last time the Orange played was on Sunday, and will have had five days off before tipoff Friday night.

There’s also the challenge of playing a tournament in an entirely new environment, with many N.C. State and potentially Duke and North Carolina fans in attendance.

For C.J. Fair, it’s all about getting adjusted. The goal remains the same.

“It’s definitely something new, something you’re getting used to,” Fair said in an interview on Cuse.com, “but it’s tournament time and everyone’s excited to get out there and play.”

Published on March 14, 2014 at 12:04 am

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