Syracuse men’s basketball: predictions and poll vs Pittsburgh

The Syracuse Orange (11-5, 2-3) travel to face the Pittsburgh Panthers (10-6, 1-4) tonight at the Peterson Events Center. The game tips at 7:00 on ESPN. Syracuse rallied in the second half for a victory the last time these teams met; here’s what we predict in round two.

Kevin: Syracuse 74, Pittsburgh 72

The Orange were able to survive the first meeting thanks to some poor foul-shooting from the Panthers. To get this road win, they will need to do a better job on the defensive boards, but I expect to see more minutes from Quadir Copeland who was the catalyst in the first game. Syracuse negated the Panthers’ size advantage by picking up the defensive intensity and it will be turnovers that allow them to steal one in the Steel City.

Mike: Syracuse 80, Pittsburgh 71

SU responded well after losing games at Virginia and Duke, so I expect the same to happen here. The roughest stretch in the conference schedule is almost over and if the Orange can put on a strong performance here, it will calm some doubts from their last defeat and also set them up to go on a nice run with three straight home games against middle-tier ACC squads. Look for Maliq Brown to get back to his hot streak and break through the Panthers’ interior.

Finn: Syracuse 72, Pittsburgh 69

Both teams come into this matchup with similar fortunes. Since the ‘Cuse win in the Dome, both teams have been massively outplayed with each picking up losses against both Duke and UNC. Pitt has scored only 65 points on average across the last three games, and Cuse’s conviction when bouncing back from losses give me reason to believe the Orange have the upper hand. If Syracuse is able to get their creators involved and make some shots early, I expect a narrow win.

Szuba: Syracuse 74, Pittsburgh 71

Taking Pittsburgh at home would be appealing but I’ll go with Syracuse given the Panthers have lost three of its last four and Blake Hinson has struggled in those losses. Carlton Carrington should play well, but Ishmael Leggett has been limited since suffering a shoulder injury in the first meeting at Syracuse. Without a bruising big man, this is a game that will benefit Brown at center. Syracuse gets its done behind Judah Mintz and another strong game from Copeland.

Dom: Pittsburgh 75, Syracuse 70

Looks like I’m going to be the one that zags here. Like most of the Nunes staff, I totally have belief in Autry’s ability to reenergize his team after a tough loss (most recently, the Orange’s win over BC after the blowout loss to Duke). That trend has been a constant all year, but Syracuse is coming off its worst loss of the season and faces one of the toughest road environments in the ACC. If Syracuse can’t win the turnover battle, it’s hard to see a realistic path to pull this one off.

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