Syracuse men’s basketball: an end of 2022 surge on the horizon?

It’s certainly been the definition of an up-and-down beginning to the season for the Syracuse Orange men’s basketball team (5-4). Losing to Colgate and Bryant at home, but beating an experienced Notre Dame program on the road? Yep, that just about summarizes the 2022-2023 season up to this point for the Orange.

However, some momentum is brewing for a young, potentially on the rise Syracuse program. Coming off back-to-back wins and looking to keep the trend going against Georgetown this Saturday, there’s a chance the Orange could be scorching hot heading into 2023.

Want more proof? Let’s take a look at what’s to come for Syracuse in the next couple of weeks.

Looking at the upcoming schedule

In the short term, Syracuse faces an easy slate of games in December compared to the rest of its schedule.

Check out who the Orange’s next five opponents are for the rest of 2022:

On paper, this is an absolutely great opportunity for the Orange to take advantage of what appears to be a golden chance to rack up some easy wins.

Again, you have to look at some of these teams within the context of their own individual schedules. Cornell (7-2), despite its current record, ranks low per KenPom because of its easy schedule to begin the year. (Ed. note: Cornell only lost by two, 107-105, at Miami the other night so that one could be interesting)

Outside of Pittsburgh, most of Syracuse’s upcoming opponents are outside the top 100 in KenPom’s rankings. The matchup against Monmouth will play out similarly to the Orange’s dominant performance against Oakland. Georgetown could give Syracuse trouble, but it’s certainly a winnable game.

And then, there’s the beginning of the matchups with the ACC. Pittsburgh appears to be the toughest matchup, but even then, Syracuse ranks just one spot lower than Pitt on KenPom’s rankings. In other words, the Orange will be playing teams with the same or inferior talent for the rest of 2022.

The best part: Syracuse will play all these teams at home. It’s the early holiday gift that keeps on giving.

The youngsters getting more reps

So, why does any of this matter?

Besides getting some easy wins under the team’s belt, you have to focus on the Orange’s schedule from the lens of the current Syracuse men’s basketball program. This is a skilled but incredibly young team. There are still position battles to sort out and lineup combinations to solve.

For the Judah Mintz’s and Justin Taylor’s on the roster, this is a golden opportunity to secure some extra minutes without being under the pressure of a close game. Could Chris Bell start shooting the lights out and finally get going against a slate of teams who all rank poorly on defense? Does Benny Williams just need a couple of good performances under his belt to earn coach Boeheim’s trust?

The more playing time for the youngsters, the more experience they’ve got by the time the Orange’s schedule really picks up.

Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

A bitter winter awaits...

Speaking of picking up, the path forward gets tougher from here.

Syracuse begins the new year with a matchup against the 0-8 (!!!) Louisville Cardinals. After that, the Orange a facing a gauntlet of a slate in January against the ACC.

Back in mid-September, our TNIAAM staff (myself included) generally agreed that January will be the toughest/most important part of the schedule for the Orange. Based on current standings, it’s clear the stats back that claim up:

There’s a lot to unpack, but at first glance, January is a ridiculously difficult month for the Orange.

Outside of Louisville and Georgia Tech, Syracuse is facing five opponents across seven games who rank as better statistically, per KenPom. This includes two games against both Virginia and Virginia Tech, both of which look incredible out of the gate. And don’t forget the matchups against North Carolina and Miami (FL), two successful teams last season who still each have the upside to be great the rest of the way (even despite UNC’s slow start, the team has played a brutal schedule to begin the year).

There’s another trend that makes this schedule incredibly difficult: the adjusted offensive efficiency of the opponents. Outside of Georgia Tech., Syracuse’s opponents in January have been scorching hot on offense. Six of Syracuse’s games in January will be against KenPom top-30 offenses.

Additionally, the Orange’s opponents are miles better offensively than defensively. It’s not a great hand for Syracuse to play against, especially given the team’s offensive struggles at times. Surprisingly, the Orange have been a surprisingly good defense team when the 2-3 zone works. But, that defensive scheme will be put to the test coming out of the new year.

If the Orange play this right, December will lead to a build-up of confidence heading into January. If Syracuse can survive the winter, the rest of the schedule cools off a bit from there.

If there’s any time to see how the team will project moving forward, the next two months will be that time.