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Syracuse hosts Boston University Thursday to begin its national championship defense. For the first time since 2018, SU clinched consecutive NCAA Tournament berths, but qualified as an at-large bid.

During Monday’s media availability, Syracuse head coach Ian McIntyre said he’s seen BU play a couple of times this year. McIntyre also explained he watched a multitude of conference championship games, observing potential opponents for SU.

The Orange have played a challenging schedule in 2023. Out of the 48 teams in this year’s tournament, Syracuse has faced eight, including five seeded Atlantic Coast Conference teams. SU is 4-3-2 against those eight, but have flashed signs of potential with a 1-0 win over No. 3-seeded North Carolina on Oct. 6 and a 2-0 victory over unseeded Ivy League champions Yale.

“We’ve seen a lot this season and we’ve been tested a lot,” McIntyre said. “We’re playing good soccer at the right time but we realized that, when it comes to playoffs, there’s a really thin margin.”

Here are some keys to success for Syracuse heading into the NCAA Tournament:

Increased efficiency in the final third

Syracuse has undergone offensive struggles this year. Losing All-Americans Nathan Opoku and Levonte Johnson was always going to be a challenge. McIntyre admitted that direct replacements for the prolific duo was impossible. Though SU ranks fourth in the ACC in shots per game (12.75), it ranks fifth in goals with 1.63.

This season, McIntyre has experimented by playing Lorenzo Boselli higher up the field as a second striker. After Boselli started hot with three goals in SU’s first two games, he’s managed just three more across his next 17 appearances. When asked about his increased attacking role, Boselli said he’s “not a huge finisher” but more of a “connector” in the midfield.

Forwards Felipe D’Agostini and Nicholas Kaloukian have each chipped in with four goals but aren’t natural finishers in front of net. D’Agostini is more of a winger, primarily utilized to distribute. While Kaloukian plays a physical brand of soccer, tasked with performing hold-up play to release some of SU’s faster players.

Against NC State and Virginia in the ACC Tournament, it looked like SU was turning the corner. The Orange scored five of their seven shots on goal against the Wolfpack. And despite scoring just once versus UVA, Syracuse produced 14 shots on target.

But in the tournament semifinal against UNC on Nov. 8, SU only netted one of its nine shots on goal en route to a 3-1 defeat.

“We’re kind of finding the right path right now,” Boselli said. “That’ll be an important key because we know how important it is to finish your chances in (the) playoffs especially.”

Winning the midfield battle

Boselli put it simply — winning the midfield battle means winning games. If Syracuse wants to advance deep into the tournament, it has to find stability in the middle of the park — a daunting task without its captain, and arguably SU’s most important player, Jeorgio Kocevski.

Kocevski received a red card against North Carolina and is suspended Thursday. The senior leads the country in assists (12) and is the engine behind Syracuse’s midfield. Without him, the Orange have a big gap in the lineup they’ll need to fill.

McIntyre said his team hasn’t discussed what the midfield will look like against BU. But center back Buster Sjoberg alluded to the possibility of Boselli dropping deep or defender Noah Singelmann stepping up to start in Kocevski’s place.

McIntyre said SU doesn’t have a “like for like” replacement for Kocevski, yet he believes in the depth of his team.

“It’ll be an opportunity for someone to step up and I think we’ve got a lot of talent in our group and Jeorgio will play his role and help us prepare for a very strong BU team,” McIntyre said.

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Tracking back on counter attacks

Syracuse is used to enjoying the majority of possession, especially at home this season. It’s been common for teams to sit back and invite pressure against the Orange. Although, McIntyre is unsure if BU will follow suit.

In the semifinal loss to UNC, the Tar Heels executed their game plan to perfection. They sat back and soaked up Syracuse’s advances.

Six minutes in, Syracuse goalkeeper Jahiem Wickham controlled the ball in his box, feeding Mikina in the middle of the field. Mikina was immediately pressured by Quenzi Huerman and Martin Vician. The midfielder got the ball stuck under his foot and Huerman pickpocketed him, setting up Vician for the opener.

Then, Vician punished Syracuse on the counterattack once again in the second half, sealing a Tar Heels’ victory.

“I think we play the best football when we’re brave on the ball,” Sjoberg said. “But then mistakes happen. So I think it’s just like being brave, but then maybe taking a little bit less risk sometimes is a trade off.”

Sjoberg said it might be helpful at times if SU plays more long passes to enter opposing territory. He said that while its possession control has improved from last year, it executed better in 2022.

Other notes

—McIntyre said set pieces are crucial in knockout round games. Sjoberg emphasized staying organized while defending set pieces and said if SU can score off of a couple, it’ll go a long way. Sjoberg scored on a corner against UNC on Oct. 6 and converted on a free kick versus Clemson on Oct. 15. Because Kocevski is SU’s main set piece taker, likely replacement Mateo Leveque will be tasked to fill his void.

—In 2022, each of SU’s contests were decided by one goal except the National Championship game. McIntyre said a big part of last year’s team was its ability to find ways to win, even if it wasn’t pretty. This season, McIntyre said he’s liked the way his team has bounced back during games and after tough results.

Published on November 14, 2023 at 10:49 pm

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