LOUISVILLE, Ky. — It’s not presumable, or even probable, but Syracuse’s win last night proved it was possible.

SU (16-8, 5-6 Atlantic Coast) beat Louisville (16-8, 6-5), 78-73, on Monday night in the KFC Yum! Center more than two days after its worst offensive performance in Carrier Dome history. It showed this team possesses the ability to possibly climb out of the deep hole it dug for itself. It showed a glimmer of hope for this team to end up in the NCAA Tournament. Just a glimmer.

This is still the team that dug the hole in the first place, the same team with the same issues from a week ago in Atlanta and the same team that ranks near the bottom of the country in many offensive categories. One night catching fire from the field isn’t a cure-all.

Syracuse’s position on the bubble is unclear because so many games remain, but this win unquestionably gave it more room for error. Bracketologist Patrick Stevens stressed it was too early to compare resumes, but he said before the UofL game, the Orange had only beaten two teams likely to make the Tournament — Buffalo and Iona — and those were not the foundation of a successful at-large bid. Now, things have changed.

“While this probably is not a vintage Louisville team,” he said, “this win is still more than something last year’s Syracuse team was able to accomplish away from home. Still, I see Syracuse as very, very borderline.”

After No. 2 Virginia smothered Syracuse on Saturday, and Syracuse beat itself at Georgia Tech three days before, head coach Jim Boeheim understood the particular importance of the UofL game. Previously, Boeheim had stressed the magnitude of different games throughout the season in private, like in a lengthy coaches meeting after Wake Forest. But he publicly dismissed concerns, like after his team missed shots at the end of regulation and the first overtime and eventually lost at Florida State.

“Who cares?” he said then about a slow start to conference play’s impact on the team’s postseason chances. “You got a whole (ACC) season … Anything can happen. Who cares? It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter.”

As recently as the UVA loss, though, Boeheim felt the urgency. After that game, he gathered his players and told them straight-up how big the Louisville game was. For at least one night, his team responded. And though Boeheim appeared more relaxed than he had since the start of conference play at the podium in Louisville, he understood the pressure hasn’t subsided.

When asked about the importance of getting a road win, he said, “We need wins. We need wins anywhere. Road’s good. We need wins. … We let a couple slip away (earlier this season) and this makes up certainly for one of those. We’re fortunate to come in here and get this win.”

Causes for concern still bubbled up in the victory: Syracuse has seven scholarship players available. It barely tip-toed past foul trouble. Its third scoring option, Oshae Brissett, shot well from 3 but still struggled to finish at the rim. SU knew from the scouting report that Louisville would use its size to abuse the low-post, but it still couldn’t stop them.

In the end, though, the Orange won. Freshman forward Marek Dolezaj played perhaps the best game of his career and the guards, Frank Howard and Tyus Battle, combined for 47 points and were everything they needed to be.

“We’ve got a team full of soldiers and we’ll keep fighting ’til the end,” Howard said about this game’s impact on the NCAA Tournament. “No matter what everyone says, (we’ll fight). That’s what the people want. People want wins.”

Alexandra Moreo | Senior Staff Photographer

The most important thing this win does is provide Syracuse with a second ACC road win, its first against a competitive team and its first in a challenging environment.

“It’s one less thing they have to do in the last closing stretch or ACC tournament,” Stevens said. “It alleviates the pressure of those (remaining) road games. It’s one piece of the puzzle they don’t have to worry about later.”

Sophomore guard Tyus Battle knows this as well as anyone. He started in the second half of last season on an 18-14 team that the selection committee gave the thumbs down because of its lack of road victories. When asked about the importance of this Louisville win, he at first demurred, saying, “Any ACC win is good … to make an NCAA push.” But then he acknowledged its importance.

“(Road wins) mean a lot,” he said. “Not too many teams win too much on the road in the ACC, so this means a lot. Road wins, those are really key.”

The catch: This UofL win only brings SU’s ACC road win total to two, matching the number of road wins from last season. To nudge even further into the Tournament field and off the bubble, Syracuse needs one more road win out of its three remaining at Miami, Duke or Boston College.

No matter the location, wins will not come easy down the stretch. Yes, Louisville is a Top 25 team in the nation for defensive efficiency, according to Kenpom.com, but Syracuse’s offense exploded after UofL interim head coach David Padgett inexplicably decided to employ a full-court press against one of the nation’s worst half-court offenses.

With Padgett extending the court — which forced a single Syracuse turnover — the Orange piled onto the Cardinals’ worst defensive stretch of the season. In its last four contests, including against the Orange, the usually stingy Cardinals have allowed opponents to shoot 45 percent from the field or better in each game.

None the above invalidates a young Syracuse team hamstrung by injuries and foul trouble gritting out a win in one of the ACC’s toughest venues. It provides context on why this offensive outburst likely will not be the new normal. It illustrates the need for Syracuse to avoid stagnation by moving the ball, to try and beef up its interior defense, to creatively solve the problems its short bench presents with foul trouble.

But, just as the game ended on Monday night, none of those thoughts mattered. The only thing of any importance to fans was the win.

In the KFC Yum! Center, one of the few fans in an orange jersey leapt in the crowd and hustled down the arena’s steps toward the court. He wore No. 15 and clapped furiously, his eyes following the Syracuse team as it walked off the floor. Another fan passed him walking in the other direction.

“Long way to go,” he said.

“Yeah,” the first fan said.

Then, as if he hadn’t really heard the second fan at all, he kept clapping.

Sam Fortier is a senior staff writer for The Daily Orange where his column appears occasionally. He can be reached at sjfortie@syr.edu or @Sam4TR.

Published on February 6, 2018 at 11:53 pm