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For the first time since 2017 and the first time under third-year head coach Gary Gait, Syracuse has advanced to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals.

The Orange took care of business in the first round on May 12 against Towson, defeating it 20-15. Nine unanswered third-quarter goals and an eight-point outing from Joey Spallina paved the way for SU to cruise to a victory.

Heading into the quarterfinals, SU takes on a more formidable opponent in Denver. The Pioneers are coming off a first-round victory over Big Ten champion Michigan, where they had three players post hat tricks en route to a commanding 16-11 win.

Here’s how our beat writers believe No. 4 seed Syracuse (12-5, 3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) will fare versus No. 5 seed Denver (12-3, 5-0 Big East) in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals in Towson, Maryland:

Zak Wolf (12-5)
Redemption
Syracuse 14, Denver 13

The last time Syracuse played in Johnny Unitas Stadium in Towson, Maryland with a chance to go to championship weekend, SU was embarrassed. In 2017 — SU’s last quarterfinal appearance — the Orange faced Towson and fell behind 6-0 in the first quarter, eventually falling 10-7. After defeating Towson in the first round, SU now has another chance at redemption.

Ten first-half turnovers had the Orange down one against the Tigers at halftime, but nine straight goals to start the third quarter blew the game open. Syracuse’s offense is explosive and can hurt teams in different ways. Whether it’s Spallina dissecting the defense from X or Michael Leo and Jake Stevens’ aggressive downhill dodging, SU’s attack is tough to stop once it gets going. The Orange made a vaunted Towson defense — which entered allowing the least amount of goals per game in the nation — look silly and I expect similar results against Denver.

Similar to Towson, Denver comes in with a highly touted defensive unit, allowing just 9.27 goals per contest. But the Pioneers haven’t faced an offense like Syracuse’s. Denver loves to play physically, but in this case, Syracuse’s finesse and speed will prevail. Another big day for Spallina will set up a possible date with No. 1 Notre Dame in Philadelphia — the greatest city on earth — in the Final Four.

Cooper Andrews (12-5)
There’s always next year
Syracuse 14, Denver 17

Unfortunately for our fellow Philadelphia native Zak, he will have to wait to cover his first slate of games at Lincoln Financial Field. I don’t see Syracuse making the Final Four this season. As I said before calling its ACC Tournament demise to Duke, SU has repeatedly shown that its defense isn’t ready to handle the nation’s best offenses on the biggest stages.

Those same issues will come back to bite the Orange yet again.

Denver doesn’t have the same individual firepower that the Blue Devils and Towson possess, though its innate all-around scoring ability provides a similar challenge for John Odierna’s group. The Pioneers are dangerous when spreading the rock at a scorching pace, which they did to help dominate Michigan for large chunks — and is exactly how Duke and Towson ran ragged on Syracuse.

I see the Orange struggling to fend off Denver in one-on-one matchups, while giving the Pioneers too much space to operate due to lapses that stem from the opposition’s ball movement. At the same time, SU goalie Will Mark went a combined 1-for-15 on first-quarter save attempts over the last two games. If he can’t provide a stable last line of defense, I’m not sure if Syracuse’s elite attack can pick up the pieces to salvage a Final Four berth.

Anish Vasudevan (13-4)
Tortoise beats the hare
Syracuse 16, Denver 13

This analogy has been thrown around The Daily Orange newsroom continuously this semester in reference to our good friend Cooper’s slow method of writing a story. He likes to take his time with features, letting them marinate before he finally gets cooking shortly before the “deadline.” This process is much to the demise of other editors (myself included), but it admittedly results in a refined end product.

Syracuse men’s lacrosse is more similar to Cooper than he might know. Following Sunday’s win over Towson, head coach Gary Gait pointed to the subpar first quarters from the Orange’s last two games. SU allowed the Cavaliers to jump out to a 4-1 lead, failing to create any sort of separation by halftime. Then, Syracuse’s attack came out firing versus Towson, but the defense couldn’t back that up.

Late adjustments ultimately put SU on top in each contest. This weekend, a poor start from the Orange is something to expect, especially against a Denver side that took a 7-1 lead over Michigan in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. However, I think they’re going to make the changes they need to in the second half to come out on top.

One of the key changes against the Tigers was mostly keeping John Mullen at the faceoff X in the third quarter. Syracuse fed the hot hand in Mullen, allowing it to pull away on the attack. The Pioneers have the fourth-best faceoff percentage nationally, so Mullen could again be the X-factor if Mason Kohn is struggling.

Published on May 17, 2024 at 8:05 pm