Syracuse vs. Boston College: Official TNIAAM Predictions & Poll

The Syracuse Orange have now lost four straight games, and are in dire need of a win as ACC play gets into full swing. Lucky (hopefully) for them, the Boston College Eagles come to town tonight to fix all of those negative vibes floating around.

Syracuse enters the game at 0-4 in the ACC and 10-7 overall. BC, on the other hand, is just 0-2 in the ACC, but just 7-8 on the year. Since losing out on an undefeated season to the Eagles back in 2014, the Orange have won two straight in fairly dominant fashion. SU owns a 43-24 lead in the all-time series. On top of that, Syracuse also has a heinous #OrangeEagle lead of well over 50 points for the 2015-16 academic year. A win here could add a few more there.

So does Syracuse pull off the win? The TNIAAM crew weighs in.

Matt Constas

Syracuse 73 - Boston College 63

The Orange tend to play to the level of their opponents, so it might be closer than we'd hope, but a great opportunity to get a confidence boosting victory. The Eagles give up a lot of points at the three-point line, so hopefully the Orange can come out firing and Gbinije can break out of his slump against one of the weaker teams in the conference.

Dan Lyons

Syracuse 76 - Boston College 64

If it hadn't been the team's fourth straight loss, and fourth straight late-second half collapse, there could have been some decent positives taken out of the North Carolina game. SU hung with a legitimate Top 10—possibly better—team for most of the game, outrebounded a dominant rebounding team, Trevor Cooney went bonkers, Malachi Richardson looks like a legitimate top-line scorer. Of course, it was still a fourth straight loss and a seventh loss and it's only early January. Syracuse has all kinds of issues, but I do think it has the talent, if not the consistency, to make an NCAA Tournament run. That means SU needs to get it together and start beating teams like Boston College the way the Orange should on paper most years. Yes, BC has played us close at times, and yes, that thing in 2014 happened, but I think this team will be motivated to get on the board in conference play with a solid, if not overwhelming 12 point win.

Kevin Wall

Syracuse 81 - Boston College 67

Syracuse cannot afford to lost to the Eagles and with the word that the Orange have closed practices to the media this week, I expect them to come out focused. The,crowd should be small due to lousy weather, so it's important that SU has a quick start. Look for Mike Gbinije to get back on track as the Orange get their 1st ACC win of the season.

James Szuba

Syracuse 82 - Boston College 72

I think Syracuse bounces back in a big way against Boston College to get the team's first win in ACC play. I expect Gbinije to have himself a good outing and Syracuse to play solid basketball before getting ready to play another tough stretch of basketball.

Michael Burke

Syracuse 68 - Boston College 60

Boston College is pretty clearly the worst team in the ACC, but (a) I just can't see any games being easy for this Syracuse team and (b) the Eagles, despite the current state of their program, have had some success at the Carrier Dome in recent visits. So expect this game to stay close, with the Orange pulling away late behind another strong performance from Trevor Cooney.

John Cassillo

Syracuse 70 - Boston College 61

The Eagles, as has been the case for several years now, run their offense through one player (this season, Eli Carter). That plays well into Syracuse's defensive strategy on paper... though there's also center Dennis Clifford to worry about. If he can play well on the offensive end and potential get Dajuan Coleman into foul trouble early, the Orange could be in trouble once again. But the talent gap might be wide enough to help SU close this out with "some" ease, even if it's by the skin of their teeth.

How about you?