Syracuse vs. Buffalo: TNIAAM Predictions & Poll

The Syracuse Orange men’s basketball team is back in action on Saturday, and hopefully they’re leaving this week’s struggle behind them when the Buffalo Bulls show up at the Dome. Last we saw UB, we lost. Luckily, the Bulls have come down to earth a bit since then.

Before Syracuse and Buffalo tip off at 6 p.m. ET this Saturday, here’s what the TNIAAM taff thinks is going to happen in this game:

Kevin

Syracuse 84, Buffalo 80

I think this will be an up-tempo pace which should help the Syracuse offense. The Orange are going to have to find Jeenathan Williams as he’s the player that Buffalo will feature on offense. Despite their record this is a Bulls team that can cause Syracuse some problems with their style of play. Hopefully the Orange learned from Wednesday’s game and will look to get Quincy Guerrier going inside instead of being content with bombing from 3.

Christian

Syracuse 75, Buffalo 65

Opponents aren’t shooting well against Buffalo. The Bulls have held opponents to a field goal percentage under 40 and a three point percentage under 26. What that means is Syracuse might struggle offensively. And yet, every game that Syracuse has had offensive inconsistency, the shining bright light has been Quincy Guerrier. He’s been eating up non-conference opposition all year, and that might be enough for the Orange to escape with another win.

Szuba

Syracuse 86, Buffalo 76

Buffalo is going to look to push tempo on offense, so I think this game will be high scoring as the Syracuse offenses bounces back after a poor showing earlier in the week. Buffalo will also be without head coach Jim Whitesell, who is quarantining after coming into close contact with COVID. The 2-3 zone will show some lapses, but the Syracuse offense hums along for a double-digit victory. Syracuse moves to 6-1.

John

Syracuse 74, Buffalo 68

No, this UB team won’t remind you of the NCAA Tournament squads of yesteryear, but they’re still a pretty capable offensive squad and that’s probably going to test SU’s defense in the same way Northeastern did. While the Bulls aren’t a great three-point shooting team (31.3%), most of the outside shots come from two players — Jeenathan Williams and Ronaldo Segu — who hit over 40% of tries from out there. Since Buffalo is one of the nation’s top three-point defenses (20th, per KenPom), Syracuse is going to need make the shift into the lane much quicker here. That means it’s Quincy Guerrier time.

Now it’s your turn...