NCAA Women's Tournament Bracket: Syracuse Orange preview

Who? The Orange of Syracuse.

When do they play in the first round? The Orange play Nebraska on Friday, March 20 at 7:30 p.m. ET.

What? They went from a hoax to a giant orange named Otto, with some very odd stops in between.

Where? Syracuse, New York, a city of festivals.

Why? All the metrics look good. I do like seeing a stronger SOS from Syracuse.

How? They were an at-large selection.

Surprise? Predicted to finish sixth in the conference, they tied for fourth, four games behind Notre Dame.

RPI: 35

SOS: 36

Record: 21-9 (11-5 Atlantic Coast)

Good wins: North Carolina. I also like the sweep of Pittsburgh.

Bad losses: I know Wake Forest kinda went on a mission in the ACC tournament, but really, Syracuse?

Who's running this show? Quentin Hillsman, since 2006, known for his recruiting prowess.

Extra, Extra! The Post-Standard. The creative minds at Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician may have some thoughts to share as well.

The Day twins: so similar even Syracuse's website calls them both Bria. Just so that we can be clear right off: the Day who has 10.6 rebounds, 9.8 points, and 2.8 blocks per game is in fact Briana. Bria comes off the bench with minimal impact. This is the second year I've experienced shenanigans with 'Cuse's stats, so this needs to stop.

Sophomore guard Alexis Peterson leads the Orange in scoring, at 15.7 per game. Junior guard Brianna Butler adds 13.3, though she appears to be in an unhealthy relationship with the long ball (88 of 306 on the year). Senior guard Diamond Henderson has been a super sub, doing a little bit of everything on offense off the bench.