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Syracuse travels to Pittsburgh for its second straight Atlantic Coast Conference road game Saturday, and the Orange will try to avenge their last-second loss to the Panthers on Jan. 6.

SU led that game by 16 in the Carrier Dome with 11 minutes remaining before collapsing down the stretch. An Au’Diese Toney tip-in gave Pitt the lead in the final seconds, and the Orange had a turnover in their final full possession.

The Orange will need the win to avoid dropping to 1-3 in conference play.

Here’s what our beat writers predict will happen when Syracuse (7-3, 1-2 Atlantic Coast) visits Pittsburgh (6-2, 2-1):

Andrew Crane (9-1)
Fool me once…
Syracuse 72, Pitt 62

Pittsburgh has competed in one game during the past 25 days and hasn’t played since it came back from 18 points and defeated Syracuse on Jan. 6. That alone should give the Orange an advantage, even if they’ve lost two of three and were out-played inside the paint against the Panthers and UNC.

Buddy Boeheim rediscovered his shooting stroke with 18 points in the first half on Tuesday, and SU remained within striking range despite him not scoring again. The balanced scoring attack — from Buddy, from Quincy Guerrier, from Alan Griffin — will help the Orange survive if one gets cold or goes to the bench with foul trouble, and all three in rhythm gives them an opportunity to pull away early against opponents like the Panthers.

It’s still too early to call these games “must-wins,” especially with 12 more conference opponents left after Saturday, but this is as pretty close as it gets. Pittsburgh’s an opponent SU should beat, and it didn’t last time. The Orange can’t afford to lose two conference games to a Pitt team playing without its best player. I can’t see that happening. 

Anthony Dabbundo (9-1)
InCapelable 
Syracuse 75, Pittsburgh 68

This is a home run spot for Syracuse, and one that they must deliver in. SU’s off a loss and looking to get revenge after it collapsed against Pittsburgh in its first meeting 10 days prior. The Orange need a quick start, much like they had against Boston College following the loss to Rutgers in December. Syracuse’s collapse coincided with Guerrier’s foul trouble, and the sophomore forward will need to avoid that this time around.

Marek Dolezaj is more of a focal point in the offense after head coach Jim Boeheim said he talked to him in the locker room about being more aggressive offensively and looking for his shot more. The Orange lead by 10 with 10 minutes to play, but they’re able to hold off the Panthers attempted comeback this time to pull even to 2-2 in conference play. Ironically for the Panthers, this is their first game since their upset win in the Carrier Dome, and the layoff enables the Orange to grab another quick lead. 

Danny Emerman (7-3)
Payback
Syracuse 81, Pitt 67

With the loss to North Carolina and the three postponed games (it’s unclear when or how they’ll be made up) there’s an increasingly slim margin for error for Syracuse in conference play. Each game has greater significance than previous years, and this Pittsburgh rematch fits into that pattern. 

The two teams are much closer than the ones that showed up when the Orange built an 18-point lead, than the ones that flipped the previous matchup on its head. Syracuse runs away with this one before its back really gets shoved up against the wall.

Published on January 15, 2021 at 12:11 am