Syracuse (19-12, 9-9 Atlantic Coast) faces Pittsburgh (20-10, 9-9) in the second round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament on Wednesday at noon in Washington D.C. The No. 9-seed Orange is looking to secure an NCAA Tournament bid and a win over the No. 8-seed Panthers would likely do the trick. But a loss will leave Syracuse biting its collective nails all the way to Selection Sunday.

Like the Orange, Pittsburgh is squarely on the bubble. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has both teams just ahead of the “Last Four In”, all of whom will play in Dayton to make the field of 64. Here’s everything you need to know about Wednesday’s crucial game.

All-Time Series

Wednesday will mark the 109th meeting between Pittsburgh and Syracuse. The Orange leads the all-time series 65-43. SU has lost the last four meetings.

Last Time They Played

Syracuse last played Pittsburgh less than three weeks ago, and lost 66-52 on Feb. 20 in the Carrier Dome. Tyler Lydon scored 21 points for Syracuse, but Trevor Cooney, Michael Gbinije, Tyler Roberson and Malachi Richardson combined for just 19 points.

“We have to make shots if we’re going to be successful,” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said after the loss. “We’re not doing that right now.”

Syracuse took a one-point lead on a Lydon 3-pointer with 8:42 to play, but the Panthers closed the game on a 24-9 run after that.

The Pittsburgh Report

Like Syracuse, Pittsburgh is right on the bubble. And like Syracuse, the Panthers come in on a two-game losing streak. Pitt closed the regular season with two road losses to Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech after an impressive home win over Duke. The Panthers won just three of their final nine conference games, with its best wins this season coming over the aforementioned Duke, Syracuse (twice) and on the road to Notre Dame.

The Panthers boast a strong inside presence with Jamel Artis, who has scored 39 combined points against SU this season, and Michael Young, who leads the team with 16.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. They also have a senior point guard in James Robinson that averages in double-figures.

How Syracuse beats Pittsburgh

It’s been a tricky formula for the Orange this season, but in both games, Syracuse has kept the game close only to see it unravel in the final five minutes. The Orange needs to find a way to make it a 40-minute effort and they need to find a way to keep Roberson involved. He was a total non-factor in the last loss, and against a team with Young and Artis, that won’t fly. He needs to crash the defensive glass hard – Pitt typically dominates the offensive boards — and be a presence defensively. The Panthers matchup well with Syracuse defensively, so connecting on early 3-pointers and playing like the season is on the line — which it is — will be the key to getting the “win-and-they’re-in” victory.

Stat to Know

Pittsburgh is hoping that it’s 20-10 record is enough to get it in the NCAA Tournament. However, what that number doesn’t show is that Pittsburgh played the 13th toughest schedule out of the 15 ACC teams. The same goes for the nonconference schedule, where the Panthers are also No. 13 out of 15 teams.

Player to Watch

Artis has been the big scorer and best player against Syracuse this season. It’s always hard to beat a team three times in one year, but if Artis plays the way he has against the Orange, it will be way more likely. He’s a big man that can step out and hit a 3. He rebounds well and is the team’s all around toughest player. Beating Pittsburgh starts with beating Artis.

Published on March 8, 2016 at 6:02 pm

Contact Sam: sblum@syr.edu | @SamBlum3