Syracuse University has been a real Cinderella story this year—if you can call a historied NCAA team a Cinderella story. Nevertheless, they came into the tournament as a 10 seed, and they have absolutely wriggled their way into the Final Four. Tonight, against No. 1 seed Virginia, the Orangemen made a 27-8 run to close out the game 68-62. Lord h'mercy, was it a nail biter.Syracuse owes a good deal of its last-second chutzpah to a certain Malachi Richardson, who, like a match, got lit AF on his long range game and scored 17 points in the last 10 mintues. Just take a peek at this one:He even made sure to wear his goggles to help you take a closer look.The real pivotal moment, perhaps, was the first taste of a lead for Syracuse in a good long minute, after seeing a 21-37 scoreline turn into 59-58.I'd say splitting four Virginia defenders is a good metaphor for how this one went—defying the odds.Granted, their path was made a bit easier by playing Middle Tennessee instead of Michigan State, and 11-seed Gonzaga instead of a No. 3 seed Utah, but you don't get to the Final Four without having put up at least a bit of a battle. And tonight was certainly that test. This is the madness they warned you about.
Advertisement