UPDATED: March 12, 2018 at 2:47 p.m.

For the first in program history, No. 11 seed Syracuse (20-13, 8-10 Atlantic Coast) is playing in the “First Four” round of the NCAA Tournament. The Orange will match up against No. 11 Arizona State (20-11, 8-10 Pacific-12) at 9:10 p.m. on Wednesday night in Dayton, Ohio. The winner will claim an 11-seed in the Midwest Region and play six-seed TCU on Friday.

Here’s what to know about the matchup.

All-time series: Tied at 1-1

Last time they played: These two teams met in the Round of 32 in the 2009 NCAA Tournament, with the Orange coming away with a 78-67 victory. Five Orange players scored in double figures, with a game-high 21 coming from Eric Devendorf. ASU had James Harden — now an NBA superstar and a two-time runner-up for MVP — on that team, but he was held to just two points on 2-of-10 shooting.

The original meeting between these teams, a loss by the Orange, was in 1968.

The Arizona State Report: It’s been a mixed bag for the Sun Devils all year. ASU got off to a scorching start, losing just one game before New Year’s Day and picking up wins against Kansas State, Xavier and Kansas (Xavier and Kansas are now both No. 1 seeds) along the way. The Sun Devils peaked at No. 3 in the AP Top 25 poll, spending four weeks in the top five.

But things took a turn in 2018, with ASU going 8-9 to end its regular season before losing in the first round of the Pac-12 tournament to Colorado. The Sun Devils were ranked for 10 consecutive weeks but by the first week of February were dropped from the list.

Offense is the name of the game for ASU, whose 83.5 points per game are the 14th-best mark in the country. Advanced metrics are favorable to the Arizona State attack, as its 117.7 adjusted offensive efficiency is the 17th-best mark in the country, per Kenpom.com. The Sun Devils can stretch the floor, too, as they have three players who average at least two 3s a game, with that trio averaging 37.5 percent from deep.

The Sun Devils also do a good job taking care of the ball and playing at their own pace. They have the 10th-best turnover percentage (14.6) in the country per Kenpom and just over 22 percent of their points come from free throws, as ASU ranks 21st in total free-throw attempts on the season.

There are flaws, though. ASU gives up 75.3 points per game, a mark that ranks in the bottom third of the country, while giving up an effective field goal percentage of 50.7, good for 171st according to Kenpom. Opponents also have an offensive rebound percentage of 30.7 against the Sun Devils, also ranking in the bottom third nationally.

How Syracuse beats Arizona State: Control the tempo. Arizona State has an average possession length of 15.7 seconds, the 20th-fastest mark in the country. That’s the fastest team SU has played since Virginia Tech came to the Carrier Dome as the 11th-fastest team in the country on New Year’s Eve, and the Orange held the Hokies to 56 points then.

The last time Syracuse came off a rest this long was in late January as it exploded for 81 points against Boston College. Still, trying to keep pace with the speed of ASU would be dangerous, especially with the limited rotation SU has been using all year. The Orange has shown in its biggest wins this season — namely Miami and Clemson — that it can succeed by locking teams up on defense and knocking down just enough shots to win. Syracuse should follow the same formula on Wednesday.

Stat to know: 44th

Syracuse was the last team to receive an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament this season and the No. 44 overall seed in the field of 68. The Orange beat out fellow ACC foes Notre Dame, which was one of the first four teams out, and Louisville.

Kenpom odds: Kenpom gives Syracuse a 47 percent chance to win and predicts a 71-70 loss to Arizona State.

Player to watch: Tra Holder, guard, No. 0

Holder, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound senior, is the leader of this ASU team. He averages 18.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game while shooting 41 percent from the field and 84 percent from the free throw line. It’ll be an interesting matchup, on both ends, between Holder and Syracuse’s 6-foot-5, 205-pound point guard, Frank Howard.

Published on March 12, 2018 at 11:30 am

Contact Tomer: tdlanger@syr.edu | @tomer_langer