STORRS — On March 21, the Iowa State Cyclones lost their opening-round matchup of March Madness to the Syracuse Orange in a 72-63 bout.
Although the loss was frustrating for Iowa State fans, it might have saved the Cyclones from embarrassment in the very next round against the No. 1-seeded UConn Huskies.
UConn played UTSA in the first round, and it was safe to say the game was over almost instantly. The Huskies won 90-52, but a halftime score of 48-14 told an even bigger story, with just six of those points coming in the first quarter for the Roadrunners.
For reference on how dominant UConn’s season has been, it is undefeated through 35 games, Big East regular-season and tournament champions, has four ranked victories and its smallest margin of victory was just three points against No. 6 Michigan.
The second-closest margin of victory for the Huskies was in their season opener against No. 20 Louisville, by 13 points. UConn’s current average margin of victory is +38.8.
For comparison, the second-closest team in women’s college basketball is 33-1 UCLA. The Bruins’ only loss this season was a 76-65 loss to No. 4 Texas, and they finished with a perfect 18-0 conference record. UCLA’s margin of victory is 14 points lower than UConn’s at +24.1.
Syracuse is not a bad basketball team; it beat Iowa State as a No. 9 seed and had a 24-9 record in the regular season, but to say it was ready for UConn would be a stretch.
Before the game, ESPN gave Syracuse a 0.9% chance of winning, while DraftKings had the Huskies favored by 37.5 points.
On the other side of the bracket, UCLA was favored by 30.5 points over Oklahoma State, and ESPN gave Oklahoma State a 3.3% chance of winning — still three times higher than Syracuse.
Syracuse had a chance to shock the world on March 23, and while it may seem unlikely, that is what March Madness can bring. Siena had a 1% chance to beat Duke in the men’s tournament and led 71% of the game — crazier things have happened.
However, Syracuse was no Siena. The first half ended 65-12, a 53-point difference. The Vegas margin was off by 15.5 points at halftime.
Syracuse struggled to score, going the first seven minutes of the second quarter without a point and finishing the quarter with just four points, both coming on midrange jumpers in the final three minutes.
UConn slowed down in the second half, knowing the game was in hand, and matched Syracuse’s scoring to finish with a 98-45 victory.
Huskies senior guard Azzi Fudd scored 34 points in 28 minutes, hitting eight 3-pointers and missing just five shots.
Syracuse cannot be blamed for the loss, and it likely would have been just as bad — if not worse — for Iowa State.
UConn has done this to teams all season. It beat Villanova 90-51 in the Big East Championship game and doubled the Wildcats’ score in the first half, leading 49-23.
All of UConn’s wins, aside from Michigan, have not been close. It beat No. 11 Iowa by 26 points, which was its fifth-closest game of the year.
If Iowa State had beaten Syracuse, the Cyclones could have been embarrassed. This would have been amplified by the team’s national visibility and media coverage.
A loss like that could have led to criticism on social media, which can affect players personally. Even with the season over and much of the roster transferring, team morale and mental health could have taken a hit.
Although a loss is never ideal, it is likely Iowa State would have wanted the opportunity to face UConn. Still, the loss to Syracuse may have saved the Cyclones from an almost certain disaster against the Huskies.
