Everything to know before Syracuse’s NCAA Tournament battle vs. Harvard
No. 6 Seed Syracuse begins its NCAA Tournament quest Sunday by hosting Harvard, which shocked SU in the Dome back in February. Joe Zhao | Senior Staff Photographer
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Harvard head coach Gerry Byrne repeated his praise for Syracuse so much it was almost awkward.
“Syracuse is back. That’s a Final Four team,” the sixth-year head coach said on Feb. 22 after the Crimson stunned the Orange 15-14 in the JMA Wireless Dome.
SU gave no reason to be considered a title contender after dropping to 3-2 that day, but Byrne insisted in various forms that his team had conquered a giant.
Well, following many trials and tribulations, it appears Byrne is running into a championship-contending Syracuse team after all. The Orange won their first Atlantic Coast Conference title since 2016 this past weekend, posting their best display of lacrosse this season. Now, there’s no better time for a litmus test against a Crimson squad that handed SU its first significant setback of 2025.
Here’s everything to know before No. 6 Seed Syracuse’s (11-5, 2-2 ACC) NCAA Tournament first-round matchup against Harvard (10-4, 4-2 Ivy League) Sunday in the JMA Wireless Dome:
All-time series
SU leads 18-1.
Last time they played …
The Orange lost in shocking fashion to the Crimson, 15-14, on Feb. 22 in the Dome. Then-No. 6 SU blazed out to a 5-0 lead early but scored just four goals in the second half against then-No. 15 Harvard. Despite John Mullen winning a whopping 28-of-31 faceoffs, the Orange couldn’t take advantage of their opportunities.
Syracuse’s offense still proved to be a strong point. Attacks Finn Thomson and Owen Hiltz scorched for six points each, and Joey Spallina added a team-high three assists. But the Orange’s downfall began with Jimmy McCool’s struggles in net, getting benched in the third quarter after failing to save 10-of-15 shots. Backup goalie Michael Ippoliti didn’t fare any better, allowing the Crimson to lock up their lead late.
The loss increased Syracuse’s losing skid to two, though it responded by rattling off six straight victories through March and early April.
Joe Zhao | Senior Staff Designer
The Crimson report
Harvard, one of the head snakes of a vicious Ivy League field this season, put together a commendable campaign despite falling short to open its conference tournament against Princeton. The Crimson won the most regular-season games of sixth-year head coach Byrne’s tenure (10) and possess one of the country’s top offenses — ranking sixth in goals per game with 14.00.
Their attack is led by star senior Sam King, who leads Harvard with 64 points (35 goals, 29 assists). King’s 4.57 points per game is the 11th-best in the nation, while fellow attack Jack Speidell (4.00 points a game, tied-26th in country) isn’t far behind. Attack Teddy Malone, who ranks third on the Crimson with 46 points, and midfielder Logan Ip, who’s tallied 36 points, add solid scoring depth, too.
But Byrne’s squad is weaker defensively. Harvard surrenders nearly 12 goals per game, a mark outside of the country’s top 50 scoring defenses. Five-star freshman goalie Graham Stevens got pelted, allowing 167 goals in 14 games. Though he flashed his talent here and there, many Harvard defenders didn’t provide consistency in the regular season.
The area the Orange should be looking at, though, is the faceoff dot. The Crimson undoubtedly have one of the worst faceoff units in the country. Freshman Jackson Henehan’s underwhelming .460 faceoff percentage is much better than junior Matt Barraco’s brutal .379 clip and sophomore Owen Umansky’s .308 rate at the X. No matter who’s in, it hasn’t been pretty.
How Syracuse beats Harvard
Mullen’s had his low moments since compiling a .903 win rate against Harvard, but the Orange can easily rely on him to win his battles at the X. That’s a given. Syracuse just needs to play offensively sound by catching the Crimson in transition and dodging closer to the cage so its attack can apply heavy pressure on the young, vulnerable Stevens.
Spallina, Hiltz and Thomson should be filtering the ball to cutting midfielders — Michael Leo and Luke Rhoa — to get quick scoring opportunities in front of the net. This is the time for the Orange to be physical, and they have the personnel to do it.
Elsewhere, SU needs McCool to settle in early and forget about his last outing versus Harvard. That likely won’t be much of an issue, however, as the redshirt sophomore is on a torrid stretch after capturing the ACC Goalie of the Year award. He’s a much different player than he was in February. Syracuse should lean on him Sunday.
Stat to know: 72
There are 74 teams in Division I men’s lacrosse. Only two, Iona and Hampton, are worse at taking faceoffs than Harvard. The Crimson’s .393 team faceoff win percentage is the 72nd overall clip in the country. Of teams that also made the NCAA Tournament, Colgate’s .441 faceoff win rate is the next-closest total, ranking 59th in D-I.
Simply put: there’s no reason for Mullen not to feast at the X this weekend.
Player to watch: Teddy Malone, attack, No. 26
With long pole Riley Figueiras likely guarding King, Syracuse must curb Malone’s impact. Because last time, it didn’t. Malone unleashed four goals and dished out an assist, leading Harvard’s offense in one of his best games of the season.
Malone enters the NCAA Tournament with 29 goals and 17 assists, and is also fresh off a snub from the 2025 All-Ivy League Teams. He’ll be hungry to prove himself this month. One of Billy Dwan III, Nick Caccamo or Michael Grace will need to lock him down if SU wants to keep Harvard quiet.
