March Madness 2012 Bracket: How Fab Melo Suspension Affects East Region

The national championship hopes for Syracuse took a huge hit on Tuesday when the team announced that starting center Fab Melo would miss the NCAA Tournament.

According to the school website, Melo did not travel with the team due to an eligibility issue.

While the big sophomore averages only 7.8 points per game, his defensive presence makes him the most irreplaceable player on the Orange roster.

In coach Jim Boeheim's 2-3 zone, the center is extremely important to anchor the entire defense. Melo has used his seven-foot frame to do just that and leads the team with 2.9 blocks per game.

Although the Orange have plenty of depth on the roster, the only player that adequately fills in at center is reserve Baye Keita, who is a huge drop-off from the starter.

Syracuse has only lost two games this season, one of which was to Notre Dame while Melo was once again ineligible to play. Keita was forced to play a season-high 25 minutes in that game, but only responded with two points and two rebounds, plus two turnovers and four personal fouls.

A mix of forwards Rakeem Christmas and James Southerland can also provide some help up front, but none of them compare to the usual intimidating force.

The team has enough offensive firepower to get past the first weekend with relative ease. However, the Sweet 16 now provides plenty of tougher tests with teams that can score on the inside. Either Vanderbilt or Wisconsin have the experience to upset the Orange, and the Elite Eight could feature tough defensive teams like Florida State and Ohio State.

Without Melo, this is a much more exciting region as any of these teams now has the ability to make a run to the Final Four.