In a do-or-die season for Adrian Autry as head coach of Syracuse Men’s Basketball, the team sits at 8-4 with one game left before ACC play. Despite a marquee win over Tennessee at the Dome, the Orange have a lot of work to do with three ranked losses in the Players Era Tournament and an ugly loss to Hofstra at home on its resume. Here’s three things that need to change for the Syracuse in ACC play if it wants to reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2021:
Syracuse needs to get more out of Naithan George
Coming into this season, Syracuse fans had high expectations for transfer Naithan George. In his sophomore season with Georgia Tech, George averaged 12 points and an ACC-leading 6.5 assists. However, both of those numbers are down this season, with the guard now maintaining just 9.4 points and 5.1 assists per game.
Although it’s been a season-long trend, the struggles have been especially imminent as of late. George was projected to be a key facilitator for Syracuse on the offensive end, and that simply hasn’t been the case. If the Orange want to meet their March Madness aspirations for this season, they need to find a way to get George closer to his production from last season.
The Orange need a healthy Donnie Freeman back, badly
Before Donnie Freeman went down ahead of the Player’s Era Tournament in Las Vegas, he led the Orange with nearly 18 points per game. In that time, he also averaged 5.3 blocks, a steal, and 1.3 blocks on 50% shooting. It’s undeniable that he’s the best player on the floor for the ‘Cuse when healthy, and outside of its upset win over Tennessee at home, its struggled without him.
Since losing Freeman, the Orange are just 4-4 with three ranked losses. In this time, their play down low has taken a step back. With Freeman, SU averaged 38 rebounds per game. Without one of their biggest players, this number has taken a dip to 35 per contest. In addition, its ability to score in the paint has taken a big hit as well, dropping from 46 to 34 points per game
Given its recent play, it will be difficult for Syracuse to make the tournament without a healthy Donnie Freeman on the floor. With him set to make his return on December 31st versus Clemson, the Orange will have to rely on Freeman playing to his potential.
The ‘Cuse can’t continue to shoot this poorly from the free throw line
To say that free throw shooting has been an Achilles heel for Syracuse this season is an understatement. The team is shooting an abysmal 60.1% from the free throw line. That’s the fourth lowest mark in the country. Not much analysis has to be done here. Shooting this poorly from the line going forward isn’t a recipe for picking up wins in ACC play and becoming a tournament team.
Syracuse wraps up non-conference play with Stonehill on Monday before taking on Clemson at the Dome on New Year’s Eve. That will be the first of a long line of tests for a team desperately trying to break its tournament drought.
