Syracuse is returning to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2008 after earning the No. 7 seed in the Oklahoma City region in this year’s draw. After falling to Connecticut in the Big East tournament semifinals, the Orange will face No. 10-seed Creighton in the first round in Knoxville, Tenn.

Should SU advance, it will likely face No. 2-seed Tennessee, assuming the Volunteers stave off an upset attempt from No. 15-seed Oral Roberts. A pair of wins would send Syracuse to Oklahoma City and the first Sweet 16 in program history.

Here’s a small breakdown of the teams the Orange could face in the opening weekend of the NCAA tournament:

Team: Creighton

Nickname: Bluejays

Record: 24-7 (15-3)

Conference: Missouri Valley

Player to watch: Marissa Janning

Synopsis: The Jays live and die from the 3-point line. Creighton knocks down more than nine 3s per game and ranks 12th in the nation in 3-point percentage. Its marquee win this year came against then-No. 25 Nebraska back in December.

Janning is one of two players on the team that shoot better than 40 percent from beyond the arc. She started just nine games this season, but is one of the top sixth men in the nation. She led the team in scoring, and her 71 made 3-pointers paced the team.

Syracuse head coach Quentin Hillsman likened the Bluejays to Villanova, a team the Orange struggled with this season. SU fell to the Wildcats twice in the regular season before besting them in the Big East tournament. Both teams are reliant on 3-point shooting, and Syracuse’s experience going up against a team like VU should prepare it for the Jays.

What Hillsman said: “Creighton’s a very good 3-point shooting team, they’re No. 2 in the country in makes and they make nine 3s a game, and it’s one of those teams that you know they take a lot of them and you make a lot. So we just got to be able to guard them. It’s going to be one of those games that we just got to get up and down the floor, play our game and guard the 3-point line.”

 

Team: Tennessee

Nickname: Lady Volunteers

Record: 24-7 (14-2)

Conference: Southeastern

Player to watch: Meighan Simmons

Synopsis: UT has long been one of the premier programs in women’s basketball. The Lady Vols won eight national championships under Pat Summit, but the legendary head coach retired in the offseason for medical reasons, handing the program to Holly Warlick.

The new head coach hasn’t missed a beat. Tennessee won yet another Southeastern Conference regular-season championship, going 14-2 in the league before falling to Texas A&M in the conference semifinals.

Simmons leads the way for the Lady Volunteers, averaging 17.5 points per game while also thriving as a perimeter defender and leading the team in steals.

What Hillsman said: “Seeing Tennessee a lot on TV, they’re a very explosive team. So is Oral Roberts. … Our region, just in general, is a tough region, so there’s going to be some tough games in there.”

 

Team: Oral Roberts

Nickname: Golden Eagles

Record: 18-12 (13-5)

Conference: Southland

Player to watch: Kevi Luper

Synopsis: ORU heads to the NCAA tournament after winning the Southland Conference tournament. Oral Roberts really struggled in nonconference play, at one point losing 8-of-10, including a 38-point loss to Baylor, but ends the season having won eight of its last nine.

The Golden Eagles split the Southland regular-season title with Sam Houston State before beating the Bearkats in the conference championship game. Luper scored 26 points in that game and leads the team with 19 points per game.

What Hillsman said: “They’re a very good basketball team. When you’re in the tournament, there are no bad teams, so you’re not going to get a walkover — it’s just not going to happen. So you just have to prepare yourself to play good basketball for two days at a time and move on.”

Published on March 19, 2013 at 12:29 am

Contact David: dbwilson@syr.edu | @DBWilson2