SU reaches No. 1 in AP, ESPN polls
Syracuse is ranked No. 1 in both of the newest Associated Press and USA Today/ESPN coaches’ polls released Monday, marking the program’s first time as the top team since the 1989-90 season. After Kansas, Kentucky and Purdue all fell this weekend, the Orange passed all three teams from the No. 4 spot.
Syracuse received 1,618 points overall in the AP poll, including 59 first-place nods. The Orange (27-2, 14-2 Big East) edged out No. 2 Kansas, who had 1,550 points and six first-place votes. Rounding out the top 5 in the AP poll are Kentucky at No. 3, Duke at No. 4 and Kansas State at No. 5.
The coaches’ poll was much closer, with Syracuse narrowly edging out Kansas, 766 to 741. The Orange received 23 of 30 first-place votes. Kentucky, Duke and Kansas State also round out the top 5 in that poll.
The last time Syracuse was ranked No. 1 came at the conclusion of the 2003 season, when the Orange won the national championship. The last time during a regular season, though, was the beginning of the 1989-90 campaign. Syracuse started that season ranked No. 1 and held the baton for 11 games before dropping to No. 6 following a loss to unranked Villanova. Syracuse made it to the Sweet 16 that season.
This year’s team has taken the opposite approach. Instead of coming in ranked as the top squad, the Orange was unranked in the preseason before jumping into the Top 10 in the Nov. 23 poll following upsets of then-No. 13 California and then-No. 6 North Carolina. Syracuse has not dropped out of the Top 10 since.
When asked about the possibility of being No. 1, Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim did not show any excitement.
‘It doesn’t matter at all in our game where you’re rated, it really doesn’t,’ Boeheim said after Syracuse’s 95-77 win against Villanova Saturday. ‘It does not matter. If we were in football, I would be really happy right now. Just try to hold on for a couple more games and we’d be in the national championship.’
The players even said that while being No. 1 would be nice, they’d rather have that ranking come April, just like the 2003 squad did.
‘I definitely agree (we should be No. 1), but we’ve been a team that’s not worried about numbers all year,’ senior center Arinze Onuaku said. ‘Our goal is to be No. 1 at the end of the year and at the end of the season. When it’s all said and done, we want to be No.1.’
Published on March 1, 2010 at 12:00 pm
