We're In!

That moment...#MarchMadness #Dancing #CuseMode pic.twitter.com/2VMPtOADPh
— Syracuse Basketball (@Cuse_MBB) March 13, 2016

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Orange are going dancing!

After much debate about whether or not Syracuse (19-13, 9-9 ACC) would make the tournament field, the Orange were awarded one of the 36 at-large bids in the 2016 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship on Sunday night.

Syracuse is the No. 10 seed in the Midwest Region and will face No. 7 seed Dayton at 12:15 p.m. ET on Friday, March 18 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo. The Syracuse-Dayton winner will play the winner of Michigan State and Middle Tennessee in the second round.

Athletics donors at the Director's level ($5,000 and above) will have the first opportunity to purchase NCAA tickets using their MyCuse account beginning at 10 p.m. tonight.

If tickets remain, men's basketball season ticket holders and 2014-15 athletics donors at the Assistant Coach level ($4,999 and below) can buy tickets via their MyCuse account, or at the Carrier Dome Box Office beginning at noon Monday, March 14. If tickets are still available at 3 p.m. Monday, they will go on sale to the general public at the Carrier Dome Box Office only.

The Orange are making their 38th NCAA Tournament appearance overall and 32nd under Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim. SU has advanced to five Final Fours (1975, 1987, 1996, 2003, 2013) and three national championship games (1987, 1996, 2003), capturing the title in 2003.

Syracuse is one of the top defensive teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Orange are third in the league in field-goal percentage defense (.412) and first in 3-point percentage defense (.304).

All-ACC Second Team honoree Michael Gbinije leads four Orange players in double figures at 17.8 points per game. Malachi Richardson (13.2 ppg), Trevor Cooney (12.8 ppg) and sixth-man Tyler Lydon (10.1 ppg) are also averaging better than 10 points per contest.

Like Syracuse, Dayton earned an at-large berth into the 68-team field. The Flyers, coached by Archie Miller, are 25-7 overall, including a 14-4 mark against Atlantic 10 Conference foes. The Flyers advanced to the A-10 Championship semifinals before losing to eventual league champion Saint Joseph's.

The Flyers are led by a pair of All-Atlantic 10 performers – Charles Cooke and Dyshawn Pierre. Cooke is Dayton's top scorer at 15.7 points per game, while Pierre is second on the club at 13.0 points per contest. Pierre is also averaging a team-best 8.6 rebounds per game.

Syracuse is 1-2 all-time against the Flyers and 0-1 against Dayton in NCAA Tournament play. The Orange lost to the Flyers in their most recent NCAA game, 55-53, in 2013-14.