Syracuse men’s basketball (9-10, 3-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) finds itself back at square one after losing to Clemson 86-72 on Wednesday. Falling below .500 for the fourth time this season, the ‘Cuse aim to rebound with a Saturday matinee against Pitt (12-6, 3-4 ACC.)
It was domination from start to finish by @ClemsonMBB in its 86-72 win over @Cuse_MBB.@IanNicholasTV and @JLeonard1013 had the call from Littlejohn Coliseum. pic.twitter.com/oFxRNDjMbp
— WAER Sports (@WAERSports) January 23, 2025
On the surface, Wednesday’s loss to Clemson doesn’t seem that bad. Despite losing by 14 points, Syracuse shot 54% from the field, while also connecting on 52% of three-pointers. In reality, it was an absolute domination from the Tigers. Clemson outscored SU 48-29 in the first half in what is becoming a consistent issue for the Orange, not playing a complete game.
“You gotta play for 40 minutes,” Autry said after the loss. “You can’t come down here and play against Clemson and not play for 40 minutes. We knew that, we talked about that and we didn’t do that.”
The disparity between one half and another may stem from inconsistency, but the one consistent thing recently has been guard J.J. Starling. Since returning from his injury on January 4th, the junior has been averaging 18.2 points and tallied 20 or more in four of those six games. Despite sinking a season-high five threes and notching 25 against the Tigers on Wednesday, it wasn’t enough for SU to keep the game close.
“We know what J.J. can do, but we need five guys,” Autry said on Wednesday. “He made some shots but then other guys, everybody knows we got to pull our weight. We just didn’t do that.”
For the second time in three games, Starling and his squad are going to have a battle in the backcourt when Pitt comes into town on Saturday. After starting the season 12-2 and ranking as high as #18 in the country, the Panthers have lost their last four games, all of which being in ACC play. Despite the struggles, Pitt is led by their backcourt duo of Jaland Lowe and Ishmael Leggett, who lead the team in scoring with 17.3 and 16.6 points, respectively.
“He can attack the basket. He can create. He plays pretty much the whole game,” Duke head coach Jon Scheyer said about Lowe after their matchup earlier this season. “He’s not a guy who shies away after missing a couple. He continues to shoot, no matter what’s happening. He has great next-play mentality in that regard. You have to continue to stay in a stance and make sure you make it as hard as possible. He’s going to score. You just don’t want him to get any easy ones, whenever possible.”
Coupled with a strong frontcourt of Florida State transfer Cam Cohren and seven-footer Guillermio Diaz Graham, the Panthers need a conference win just as much as Syracuse does. The contest gets underway on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. WAER’s coverage on 88.3 FM or waer.org begins at 12:00 with McClurg Remodeling Countdown To Tipoff.