After stating on Talking Trash Wednesday that Syracuse had a great chance to make the NCAA Tournament, they go and LOSE BADLY to DePaul. Here's some of the stats that stand out... -Worst loss in the Jim Boeheim era...and that says how bad this was. -First time since 1971-72 season that Orange gave up more than 100 points in a regulation 40-minute contest. -SU's RPI rating drops to 36, and would cost them the NCAA bid if they lose to Villanova. (I don't think a win over Cincinnati in first round of Big East Tournament would save them.) Syracuse beat writer Mike Waters has a great webblog that is a must read for any SU fan. I think he sums up the DePaul "wipeout" pretty well. On a happier note, Gerry McNamara scored his 2,000th point in the blowout. He's a class act and deserves better than his fate this season. If Devendorf was here with G-Mac and Hakim Warrick, this would be a top-5 team easily. Here's the silver lining to this loss: Syracuse can either roll over and take their NIT bid...maybe make a little run there and give G-Mac a few more games in front of the home crowd. or... They can go out and beat Villanova, then Cincinnati, and make a strong case for the NCAA's. I don't believe that Boeheim will let this loss get to the team, but they need to assess the ramificiations. At 19-10, they are a good team, but they need to win that 20th game. If they don't, they shouldn't be in. They have a great NIT resume, but a subpar NCAA one. The last time Syracuse lost to a team with an RPI lower than 100, was Rutgers in 2003. It was a very tough loss...a close game, but at least it was close. They did go on to win the national championship, but they had a very high RPI (9) and were 24-5. Losing to DePaul is not the type of loss you want at the end of a season. DePaul did shot extremely well from the field, and especially from beyond the arc...if DePaul had a usual shooting night, they beat Syracuse by 10. Bottom Line: Villanova is a must win, and if they don't win, they should be considered for the Big Dance.