Syracuse, Jim Boeheim embrace new role as villain

With the Syracuse Orange set to tip off vs. the Arizona State Sun Devils in the First Four tomorrow, there’s obviously plenty to talk about. We’ve been doing that here. But unsurprisingly, others have been mentioning SU as well.

Below is today’s collection of daily links, including the first one by a guy you’re probably familiar with.

The Syracuse Orange have become college basketball’s biggest troll (The Comeback)

Also, honestly, Jim Boeheim, Syracuse’s basketball players, and Syracuse’s fans simply don’t care. Because with Sunday’s decision by the selection committee to put 20-13 Syracuse in the Tournament as an 11-seed, it may have completed the program’s latest transformation, from one of college basketball’s elite programs into college basketball’s biggest troll.

Syracuse basketball point guard Frank Howard dealing with strep throat (Syracuse.com)

Howard worked out during a public practice here, working up a sweat and participating in all the drills his teammates performed. The Orange plays Arizona State on Wednesday at 9:10 p.m. in a game that will determine which 11 seed moves on to Detroit and TCU. Howard expects to be ready for that game. He said he’s taken his prescribed medications and is gradually getting better.

Scouting the ACC Tournament for potential Nets draft picks (The Athletic)

“He’s got great size for a two guard,” the NBA scout told The Athletic. “He handles and shoots the ball well, although he has a little bit of a hitch in his shot. He defends and is a good athlete. He’s just a really solid player who plays the right way. I think he translates to the NBA very well.”

How to build a bracket for this wide-open NCAA Tournament (FiveThirtyEight)

But no matter whether Syracuse or Arizona State wins their play-in game, they’ll give TCU a tough game in the first round — and it only gets harder from there, with Michigan State likely waiting in the wings. A deep run by the Frogs, playing in their first tournament since 1998, doesn’t appear to be in the cards this year.

March Madness Bracket 2018: Upset predictions, Final Four pick in Midwest (Sporting News)

Don’t be surprised if... Syracuse wins a couple of tournament games. Or more. The uncommon Orange style and their uncommon good fortune could produce another unexpected tournament run. Their zone is ideally suited to shut down Arizona State’s downhill dribble-drive game, and TCU simply isn’t a great team. The Orange have to win two just to earn the right to face Michigan State’s Big Ten champions, but it’s not a matchup the Spartans would be eager to see.

Remembering Chris Gedney: All-American had the ‘orangest blood of all of us’ (Syracuse.com)

“I knew what an example I could be, what an inspiration I could be to other people,” Gedney said in the autumn of his return to the field. ”That’s what motivated me.” That never left him. He served on the National Down Syndrome Society Board of Directors, the Imagine Syracuse Executive Board of Directors and was actively involved in the New York State Special Olympics and the Southwest Chapter of Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America.

The life of a Syracuse men’s basketball student manager (Daily Orange)

Student managers are at the low end of the basketball food chain, but they are vital to Syracuse. The menial jobs are coveted. There are about 20 to 30 applicants per year, said CB Garrett, a manager who is a junior at SU. About five each year make the cut, after the other applicants are sifted out via a 15-minute interview. Most students who become managers have their eye on a future career in sports.

Jim Boeheim makes some media appearances:

Also, if you’re head to Dayton, here’s where you can hang out with your fellow Orange fans: