Men's Basketball

Beat writers offer split predictions for Syracuse-Boston College matchup

Daily Orange File Photo

Tyler Roberson is one of just four players on this year's team who played against Boston College last season.

By The Daily Orange Sports Staff

After suffering five nonconference losses for the first time ever, Syracuse (8-5) begins Atlantic Coast Conference play on Sunday at Boston College (7-6). SU is coming off an 80-56 victory over Cornell on Tuesday, while the Eagles most recently beat Providence on Dec. 23.

Beat writers Connor Grossman, Matt Schneidman and Paul Schwedelson predict the outcome of the game.

Connor Grossman (8-5)
New year, same team
Syracuse 63, Boston College 60

Syracuse is going scratch out its conference opener, but it’s hardly going to leave an abundance of encouraging signs. Two months ago, this wasn’t supposed to be a close game. Now it could be a step in deciding the worst team in college basketball’s best conference. With Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech already knocking off UNC and Duke, respectively, the pressure’s on to stay out of the ACC cellar.

Matt Schneidman (9-4)
Undefeated in 2017
Syracuse 66, Boston College 58



Even though the Orange seems like the runt of the ACC right now, Boston College may be closer to fitting that bill. Jerome Robinson steers the ship for the Eagles, but at last the 2-3 zone plays up to standard and holds a conference opponent below 60 points. By no means will this win be pretty, but Jim Boeheim surely doesn’t care about how his team’s gets in the win column, especially as the Orange faces BC before the big dogs of the ACC come up on Syracuse’s schedule.

Paul Schwedelson (9-4)
Unhappy New Year
Boston College 61, Syracuse 60

“If Syracuse could just get its defense together and just get some more offensive production against a halfway decent team then, maybe,” … Orange fans have been saying things like that all year. But the start of ACC play is a breaking point. Boston College has played well over the past four games, including wins over Auburn (ranked 97th by Kenpom.com) and Providence (ranked 67th). Syracuse has struggled defending guards and BC’s two best players, Jerome Robinson and Ky Bowman, are guards averaging a combined 43.3 points since Dec. 12. If you’re a Syracuse fan, make sure to enjoy New Year’s Eve since you might not enjoy New Year’s Day.





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