In the ACC opener, @Cuse_MBB fell short to @NDmbb 69-64 in South Bend. The Orange have lost four of their last five.@BurgessLuke03 and @SamuelReisTV had the call from Purcell Pavilion. pic.twitter.com/NdQljYEvfw
— WAER Sports (@WAERSports) December 7, 2024
Syracuse Men's Basketball (4-4, 0-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) scored a season low 64 points against Notre Dame (5-5, 1-0 ACC) in its 69-64 loss on Saturday. The Orange lost their conference opener for the second consecutive season, and this defeat also marks their fourth loss of the last five games.
For the first time since 2014, SU didn't make a single three-point shot as it went 0-9. On the other side, ND cashed in 36% of it's triples going 8 for 22. The 24 difference point difference made it even more difficult for Syracuse to keep it close with Notre Dame.
Last season, forward Chris Bell made 42% of his three-pointers. Through eight games, the junior has yet to shoot over 40% in any contest and is shooting just 27% on the season.
“He's just not in a good place right now,” Head Coach Adrian Autry said after the game about Bell.
The trend of poor shooting continued for @Cuse_MBB. For the first time in a decade, the Orange didn't hit a three over the course of an entire contest.@SamuelReisTV, @alexremoll and @GriffinMarcy1 break down SU's struggles from beyond the arc and at the line.
— WAER Sports Talk (@WAERSportsTalk) December 7, 2024
☎️ : 315-433-2011… pic.twitter.com/MIYSVWVRTC
It also didn't help that the Orange missed 8 free throws. Syracuse went 16-24 from the charity strip. This was the second time this year the Orange have missed more foul shots than the amount of points they lost by. The ‘Cuse has only shot over 70% from the line twice this season.
“I thought those were the things that decided the game,” Autry said about free throws, “we work on it, we got to be able to make those.”
Despite the shooting struggles, Syracuse kept themselves close. SU had the lead with under seven minutes left, and tied it back up with less than four minutes to go. Forwards Donnie Freeman and Jyáre Davis each totaled 20 points for the Orange, but nobody else scored more than eight.

SU's best three point shooter this season, Elijah Moore (who, after today is shooting 40% from beyond the arc), missed all three of his first half shots and didn't hit both of his shots from distance. The freshman didn't connect on a bucket until the clock read 2:26 in the 2nd frame.
Just because Syracuse couldn't score from deep, it didn't mean the basket was closed. ND guard Braden Shrewsberry scored a game-high (and tied a career high) 25 points on 8-15 shooting and 6-11 from distance. The sophomore also connected on a three with two minutes left that ended up being the dagger.
Guard Braeden Shrewsberry has been on fire for @NDmbb.@SamuelReisTV was on the mic for the sophomore's big-time bucket.
— WAER Sports (@WAERSports) December 7, 2024
📻@waer883, https://t.co/BG0Q3sGq3P pic.twitter.com/XRYoPGKqpI
“Whatever happened out there, we got to flush it and move on to the next,” Donnie Freeman said after the game about his mentality moving forward.
Syracuse has a quick turn around because UAlbany visits the JMA Wireless Dome on Tuesday. WAER’s coverage starts with countdown to tip-off at 6:30 p.m followed by gametime at 7:00.