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No. 3 Syracuse starts its postseason on Friday in Charlotte, North Carolina at the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament. The Orange finished the season with back-to-back conference wins over North Carolina and Virginia, giving them their most conference wins since 2018.

SU’s three ACC victories helped it seal the No. 2 seed and a matchup with No. 3 seed Duke in the semifinals on Friday. The Blue Devils are coming off a 15-12 defeat to North Carolina in their regular-season finale, their second loss in three games.

Here’s how our beat writers believe No. 2 seed Syracuse (11-4, 3-1 ACC) will fare against No. 3 seed Duke (11-4, 1-3 ACC) Friday:

Zak Wolf (10-5)
History doesn’t repeat itself
Syracuse 13, Duke 15

My tagline can be interpreted in two ways. Syracuse’s last ACC Tournament win came against Duke in 2016 in the championship game. This season, the Orange also defeated Duke 10-4 on March 20. No matter which way you look at it, I doubt Syracuse will get past the Blue Devils.

When SU upset Duke earlier, reigning Tewaaraton winner Brennan O’Neill was held to just 1-for-11 shooting and two points. It was one of five times this season O’Neill was held under five points. I can’t see how O’Neill is kept that quiet for a second time.

The rest of Duke’s attack is potent as well. Six other Blue Devils have scored at least 15 points or more this season. There’s no reason Syracuse’s offense can’t keep up with Duke, but O’Neill will be too much to handle for the Orange this time around.

Cooper Andrews (10-5)
Womp womp
Syracuse 13, Duke 16

At this point, it’s safe to say that Syracuse men’s lacrosse has emerged from the depths of mediocrity. Marquee wins over Virginia, Johns Hopkins and Duke proved it. Yet that March 20 victory over the Blue Devils, a 10-4 result that marked Duke’s lowest single-game scoring total since 2012, still stands above the rest.

Based on recent history, though, I don’t see that happening again.

Ten first-half goals allowed in a loss to Notre Dame. A season-worst 18 goals versus Cornell,
which used the production to come back from multiple seven-goal deficits. And to close the regular season, SU let in 17 goals to Virginia as its unabating offense was tasked with a monumental comeback effort.

Syracuse may have succeeded in surging late versus the Cavaliers, though the Blue Devils are a different animal. O’Neill, Josh Zawada and Dyson Williams are arguably the most lethal attacking trio in the country. If the Orange continue to let star attacks run rampant on them, chances of an ACC title appearance are limited. And unlike its first matchup against Duke, SU’s back end will falter and its offense won’t have time to pick up the pieces.

Anish Vasudevan (12-3)
1st trip, 1st win
Syracuse 14, Duke 12

Who would have thought this would happen? Not me. 2024 has been a year of firsts for head coach Gary Gait in his third season at the helm of Syracuse. His first five-game win streak. His first ACC Tournament berth. And, most recently, his first win over Virginia. So why not add his first ACC Tournament win?

The Orange have already shown their ability against the Blue Devils. Though the game itself was sloppier than most, a five-goal third quarter gave Syracuse a comfortable win over Duke. It was a grandiose achievement for Will Mark and SU’s defense, which held reigning O’Neill to just one goal on 11 shots.

Since the Duke game, Syracuse’s defense has been off and on. Mark made key stops when needed against the Cavaliers, but the Orange struggled while having to play a lot of defense against Cornell’s elite offense. They’ll turn in a good enough performance Friday in Charlotte, allowing their dynamic offense to put the Blue Devils away.

Published on May 1, 2024 at 11:02 pm