Bubble watch: Syracuse basketball fans left with unpleasant rooting task tonight

Syracuse, N.Y. — The Syracuse men’s basketball team entered the weekend on the outside of most NCAA Tournament bracket projections. Naturally, a loss to No. 5 Duke didn’t help.

But exactly how far off the Orange is from making the field of 68 is a critical question entering the final week of the ACC regular-season and the beginning of conference tournament competition.

As a whole, the Bracket Matrix, which is a compilation of bracket projections from experts and amateurs, currently lists Syracuse as the second team out of the field.

Syracuse’s metrics still look good and the Orange has no horrible losses. But it also lacks the type of marquee wins over big-name teams that powered the Orange…