Buddy Boeheim suspended vs. Duke following Syracuse ACC Tournament win

Syracuse knocked off Florida State 96-57 in their first game of the ACC tournament on Wednesday afternoon. The Orange played their most complete game of the season at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Cole Swider stood out against the Seminoles and scored 28 points on four 3-pointers.

The Orange snapped a four-game losing streak and kept their season alive.

“Today was great,” Swider said. “Obviously we’ve lost a lot of close games, we’ve been in a lot of battles this year where we feel like we kind of gave the game away. Epically for me, it was great to go out there and play like that.”

The win took a back seat to an incident that took place midway through the first half. Buddy Boeheim hit FSU’s Wyatt Wilkes in the stomach while running back after Joe Girard III knocked down a 3-pointer.

“In the heat of today’s game, after some shoving in the lane, I swung my arm while turning to go back up the court,” Boeheim said in a statement after the game. “It was wrong to act out in frustration. I apologized to Wyatt Wilkes multiple times in the handshake line. He said not to worry about it, but I know it was wrong.”

Boeheim finished by saying he prides himself on respecting the game and his opponents.

Here is Buddy Boeheim pretty obviously punching a dude in the gut. pic.twitter.com/xIbUSdoiRa

— Troy Machir (@TroyMachir) March 9, 2022

The ACC suspended Boeheim for one game hours after Syracuse’s win over Florida State. Syracuse’s regular-season leading scorer will miss SU’s quarterfinal tournament matchup. Wednesday night’s win may have been his last game in an Orange jersey.

Coming up next is No. 1 seed Duke. The Orange have lost both matchups to the Blue Devils this season. The first game wasn’t close as the Orange trailed by as many as 30 in an eventual 79-59 loss back on Jan. 22 at Cameron Indoor Stadium. At the Feb. 26 game, Duke got out to a 14-0 start and went on to win 97-72.

Jim Boeheim said after the Feb. 26 game that Syracuse couldn’t handle Duke. For the Orange to win tomorrow they are going to have to control the paint. Duke center Mark Williams scored a career-high 28 points in the second matchup and potential top-five pick Paolo Banchero dominated.

Syracuse’s shooters are going to have to make shots. It may be ugly, but the Orange must make it difficult on the Blue Devils and score in bunches in order to gut out a win.