Syracuse, N.Y. - After Braedon Bayer plugged a crucial late-game gap that helped his Syracuse basketball team advance past Michigan State and into the Sweet 16, his popularity in the form of new Instagram followers grew by about 1,600. He's no longer on Twitter, but email notifications of new followers there kept appearing in his inbox, too.
Bayer hopes that popularity follows him over the next few weeks or months. He hopes that college coaches, in particular, view him as a viable option as a graduate transfer. He hopes the small window of opportunity he seized in Detroit opens wide to new possibilities.