Does Syracuse Basketball Still Have a Shot at Getting Into The 2016 NCAA Tournament?

The Orange have painted themselves into a Last Four In corner.

If the Syracuse Orange do make it into the 2016 NCAA Tournament, it won't be for a lack of trying not to.

The Orange were in solid shape two weeks ago at 18-8, winners of eight out of nine games. They even received a handful of votes in the AP Poll. All signs pointed to them setting up shop as a 9- or 10-seed, which would have been just fine given how December and early January went down.

Then they lost to Louisvile. Then they lost to Pittsburgh. They beat NC State but followed that up with losses to UNC and FSU. And now they've lost out in their first ACC Tournament game, leaving them a bleak 19-13 (9-9). Its not the kind of record that inspires confidence headed into Selection Sunday and Syracuse has missed the tournament before with better marks than that.

So, do they still have a shot? Well a lot of that is going to depend how the rest of the conference tournaments shake out. Keep that rooting guide handy so you know who we need to make sure doesn't steal a bubble spot. There's already been enough of that.

As for the bracketologists, Joe Lunardi still has the Orange in but barely. As in, the very last team to get in. He has SU as a 10-seed playing 7-seed Providence out of Des Moines.

CBS Sports' Jerry Palm has the team "on the fence" headed into Sunday and thinks they've squandered whatever goodwill they might have gotten from dealing with Boeheim's suspension.

Syracuse fans have been hoping for "consideration" for the nine games coach Jim Boeheim missed, but that consideration, if there is any at all, will not help them get selected. That has to be earned. Besides, Boeheim coached the team during the season ending slump, and his coach-in-waiting was in charge in his absence. It's not like they put the band director in charge, and Boeheim isn't scoring or rebounding or playing defense. It would be foolish to count on Boeheim's absence having any positive effect on Syracuse's hope for selection.

Shelby Mast at USA Today as Syracuse as one of the Last Four Out, completing the circle and showing us that the Orange are in a very unpredictable position right now.

They only have themselves to blame.