NCAA Basketball: Ranking the 2021 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 teams
By Adam Childs
14. Creighton Blue Jays
Creighton looked vulnerable heading into the tournament after getting waxed by Georgetown in the Big East championship game, but they looked legit in the tournament. They caught a break when Ohio beat Virginia in the first round, but they took care of business rather easily.
Next up for the Blue Jays is the unenviable task of playing Gonzaga. To win the tournament you have to beat the best and this is their chance to do it. But not many people are giving them a chance to win better yet stay in the game.
Creighton was known for living and dying by the three, but they are more than that, but the lack of size will be a problem against Gonzaga. The Blue Jays beating the Zags could be the biggest upset of the tournament and we have already seen some big ones.
13. Syracuse Orange
The Orange have played extremely well in this tournament led by Buddy Boeheim, but what happens when he isn’t hitting shots? If he continues his hot play I don’t know if I would be against them, but that is a big “if”.
Syracuse’s zone will always give teams fits, especially ones outside the ACC that don’t see them often, but the Orange haven’t proven to be able to play at a high level for very long. They aren’t a great shooting team and only recently have they become a very good defensive team.
Sometimes a team gets hot out of the blue and makes a run, but normally they need more than one player or one that has proven himself over a full year. Boeheim could be that guy but we need more than two games to call ourselves believers.