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Jim Boeheim took part in a teleconference on Monday to talk about the upcoming ACC Tournament. The Syracuse Orange will enter their inaugural tourney as the two-seed, which means they're gonna be sitting around until Friday before they play.
While that is considered a "gift" for being one of the best teams in the league, Boeheim took time to remind everyone it doesn't always work out that way.
"It's always difficult to wait for that double-bye. We found in the Big East that those teams didn't win at a high percentage even when they're the heavy favorites to win. I think there's an advantage to playing a game or two in a tournament and get yourself ready to play.
"It's proven in the Big East that statistics are overwhelmingly in favor of the teams that are playing one or two games to have a great chance to win it and the percentages should be the other way because you're playing one of the top seeds."
The math is simple. With the double-bye, not only are you playing a team with momentum, but you're probably playing a better squad than if you had a single-bye. Of course, ask anyone if they'd rather have come in fifth and received a single-bye, you're not gonna get any votes. So, whatever. Just win.
The the teleconference, Boeheim also talked about some of the players and how they're looking going into the tourney. The one that sticks out has to be Trevor Cooney, who has reverted into being the streaky shooter we feared he might.
"He's been just a little off. But I think he's gotten those out of the way. He's ready to go now. I think he's fine. (Boeheim chuckled.) He's had his bad string of games. He's had some good looks. He just hasn't been quite as productive. But he hit two key shots yesterday that got us the lead. That's a very good sign. His defense has been good. He's second in the league in steals to Tyler. I think he's kept his aggressiveness, he's kept his attitude. I feel like he's a guy that can make shots at any time, get on a streak any time."
