Just 11 days ago, Jim Boeheim's Syracuse Orange fell to Pittsburgh in the second round of the ACC Tournamen — all but popping the team's NCAA Tournament bubble.
But despite many doubting Syracuse's chance, the Orange did gain a berth in the NCAA Tournament, earning a No. 10 seed in the Midwest Regional. With victories over No. 7 seed Dayton and No. 15 seed Middle Tennessee State, SU has now reached reached a Sweet 16 matchup with No. 11 seed Gonzaga. Pundits can now nag about Syracuse's "fortunate" (or lucky) path through the tournament.
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If the Orange (21-13, 9-9 ACC) beat the Bulldogs (28-7, 15-3 WCC) on Friday, it will be arguably the easiest route a team has ever taken to the Elite Eight.