Syracuse vs. Wake Forest: College basketball game preview, TV schedule

Syracuse picked up an impressive victory on Sunday over Virginia Tech. Can they continue it against a Wake Forest team better than their record says?

TV schedule: Wednesday, Jan. 3, 7:00 p.m. ET. ESPNU

Arena: Lawrence Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Busting Brackets has just released its first edition of Bracketology, predicting which teams will be in the tournament, and who’s left out. In regards to the ACC, eight teams received a bid. The very last one went to the Syracuse Orange 12-2 (1-0), who was placed in the West region as a 10 seed — coincidentally in a Sweet 16 rematch against Gonzaga.

The inclusion of Syracuse comes largely by the win against Virginia Tech, where the iconic 2-3 zone claimed another victim. The Hokies came into the game as a top 10 scoring offense but were limited to just 19 points at the break.

With only six players receiving playing time, the performances of players like 20 ppg scorer Tyus Battle and double-double machine Oshae Brissett literally determine whether Syracuse wins or loses this game. Whether it’s Busting Brackets or Joe Lunardi’s or anyone else’s brackets, one thing is for sure; the Orange is right on the bubble and a bad loss will throw them on the wrong side.

That’s where Wake Forest 7-6 (0-1) comes in. A team that coming into the season was expected to compete for a bid themselves, awful losses right out the gate have all but doomed their season.

The Demon Deacons aren’t the only ones who suffer by this, as the rest of the ACC now has to deal with a talented “RPI bomb”. North Carolina was almost the first victim, trailing Wake at home last Saturday before pulling it out in the end.

It’s not surprising in the least, as junior guards Keyshawn Woods and Bryant Crawford have All-ACC talent. It’s the consistency of the rest of the team that kills them late in games.

Next: Missed chances theme in latest ACC power rankings

With this being at Wake Forest, as well as tough games against Virginia and Notre Dame coming up, this could be a trap. The Demon Deacons are going to ruin some resumes in conference play. But Syracuse is facing a weak rebounding team, so look for Brissett and Paschal Chukwu to have big nights on the boards, in an overtime game.

Prediction: Syracuse 82 – Wake Forest 77 in OT

Bonus Prediction: Oshae Brissett 25 points, 20 rebounds in win