Next Four Games Will Tell Tale of Syracuse's Season

There is no question that Syracuse's loss to Pittsburgh was a tough one to swallow from the Orange side of things. There is also no question that Syracuse has a chance to bounce back and make that defeat an exception rather than the rule.

Prior to that game, Syracuse has had a good start to the season at 6-1. Their lone loss to a ranked Rutgers squad. This one feels different because Pittsburgh was without their best player, and Syracuse led by double digits for most of the game. That includes an 18 point lead in the first half, 14 point halftime advantage and 11 point lead with six minutes remaining. No question that is touch to swallow, and the immediate aftermath will be that of discouragement and exasperation.

However, Syracuse has an opportunity to bounce back. The next four games are winnable for Syracuse and will tell the tale of how the rest of the season goes. Does Syracuse let this loss define what they are during the 2020-21 campaign? Or do they fight back and go on a winning streak to prove this year is different than the last few?

Ultimately, the loss to Pittsburgh will not cost Syracuse an NCAA Tournament bid. That is a 6-2 squad with a quality win over Northwestern. Pittsburgh will not end up as a team that becomes a "bad loss" for Syracuse. And if that is your worst loss, you'll be fine.

Next up for Syracuse is Georgetown on Saturday. The Hoyas are 3-7 on the season. That would be a bad loss. Syracuse needs to bounce back and beat them. Despite it being a rivalry game that may make it closer than it otherwise would be, Syracuse just needs to find a way to get a victory. They are the better team on paper.

After that, Syracuse has a top 20 Clemson squad coming to the Dome. The Tigers are a good team that has had a really strong start to the season. That said, they are still a team Syracuse can beat. A win there gives Syracuse perhaps its best of the season and changes the feel of how things are going. That would improve Syracuse to 8-2 (3-1) on the season.

A rematch with Pittsburgh comes several days later, though it is on the road. If the Orange should be extra motivated for that game based on how things fell apart Wednesday night. If Syracuse has Sidibe back and Guerrier can stay out of foul trouble, their biggest issue (Pittsburgh's offensive rebounding) can be quelled to some extent. Syracuse should also be better offensively. They won at Pittsburgh by more than 20 points last season, and that was with fans.

The next one in this four game stretch is a home tilt with Miami. The Hurricanes have two really good players in Chris Lykes and Isaiah Wong. However, they are 4-5 (0-4) on the season despite some close conference losses. They are a team Syracuse should beat at home.

So those next four games will determine the direction of the season and determine what Syracuse needs to do down the stretch in order to feel good about their NCAA Tournament chances. A Syracuse team sitting at 10-2 (5-1) or even 9-3 (4-2) is in good shape. An 8-4 (3-3) or 7-5 (2-4) Syracuse team is anything but.

Therefore, while this will not help the sting of the loss to a rival in which you had a double digit lead for most of the game (and led for 98% of it), it does not have to be season defining. These next four games will tell us whether the loss to Pittsburgh was just a bump in the road, or whether Syracuse will be a team that hovers slightly above .500 and will struggle to be a tournament team

Having a few more days of practice to get back into rhythm will help. They clearly do not respond well to weeks off. Hopefully that does not happen again going forward. Regardless, the season is still in front of them and it starts on Saturday.

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