ACC Basketball power rankings: Florida State rises, Louisville dives down

ACC Basketball power rankings: Florida State rises, Louisville dives downward

CORAL GABLES, FLORIDA - JANUARY 22: Kameron McGusty #23 of the Miami Hurricanes drives to the basket against Matthew Cleveland #35 of the Florida State Seminoles during the first half at Watsco Center on January 22, 2022 in Coral Gables, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /

7 of 15

ACC Basketball Syracuse Orange guard Buddy Boeheim Joseph Girard III Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports /

. Orange . 9. team. 445. . 9-10 (3-5)

The good news for the Orange is that they’re 2-2 in the last four games. The bad news is that they’re still under .500 overall on the season and nowhere near the NCAA Tournament picture. That was made crystal clear on Saturday, where Syracuse trailed by as many as 30 points in what ended up being a 79-59 defeat to Duke.

The defense allowing the more athletic Blue Devils to do whatever they wanted wasn’t a big surprise but the Orange shooting just 35% from the field and a dismal 5/29 from three-point range is a recipe for a blowout no matter what. Big man Jesse Edwards led the way with 12 points and nine rebounds, although most of his production was done very early on.

It hasn’t been all bad news for Syracuse, as they do have recent wins over Pittsburgh and Clemson at home, with the ladder being a 91-78 victory. Buddy Boeheim and Joe Girard had 25 and 23 points respectively, while both Edwards and Jimmy Boeheim each had a double-double.

The schedule gets much easier in the next couple of weeks, facing off against Pittsburgh, NC State, Louisville, and Boston College. If they want to finish over .500 in league play, they’ll have to win most of these looming matchups.