NCAA Basketball: Kansas dominance, overrated FSU, and more weekly takeaways

4) Joe Girard is going to be a special player for Syracuse

Florida State had to come back to beat Syracuse on Saturday by three, all but solidifying the Orange’s place in the NIT (and was the latest less-than-ideal performance by the Noles, but I digress). Yet the biggest reason Syracuse was still in the NCAA Tournament has been the play of freshman Joe Girard III.

A three-star recruit who gained national notoriety in high school for breaking Jimmer Fredette’s scoring record in the state of New York, it took Girard about a month to adjust to the college game, and then another month or so to solidify his role in Syracuse’s offense.

And then, over the last month or so, Girard has either been the go-to guy or the heavily relied on second option behind Elijah Hughes. He has scored in double figures in 13 of the Orange’s last 16 games, including a career-high 30 against NC State.

Girard doesn’t overwhelm opponents physically – he’s only 6-1 and 180 pounds – but he has an uncanny ability to create his own shot off the bounce. He’s a crafty finisher in the lane, too.

Given the fact Girard has routinely come up big when the Orange have needed him to over the past month, it’s easy to see how special he has the potential to be. By the time his four years are up at Syracuse, I bet we’ll be talked about Girard as one of the best players in program history.