After a 2025-26 regular season full of tribes and mostly tribulations for Syracuse men’s basketball (15-16, 6-12 Atlantic Coast Conference), the Orange attempt to close out the season on a positive note in the ACC tournament. 14th-seeded SU faces 11th-seeded SMU (19-12, 8-10 ACC) on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. and it's a rematch of a close matchup earlier this season.
Nearly a month ago, on Feb 14th, Syracuse narrowly defeated SMU 79-78 due to a game-winning contested layup by guard Nate Kingz. The bucket from SU’s guard came with just two seconds remaining. The Orange leading scorer in that victory over the Mustangs was sophomore Donnie Freeman, who dropped 18.
Extra! Extra! @Cuse_MBB beats @SMUBasketball 79-78 in stunning fashion. @joshrichy_04 and @RyanRandone had the call for an electric win from the Dome. pic.twitter.com/xtbeoGF7IX
— WAER Sports (@WAERSports) February 14, 2026
“We felt like this was an NCAA tournament opportunity for us,” SU head coach Adrian Autry said after facing SMU last month. “SMU is a damn good team and we got to play them on our home court, and we didn’t wanna lose that opportunity.”
Despite the success of the Orange in that one win over the Mustangs, it’s been downhill since. SU lost five straight games to close out its regular season, ending the year with an under .500 record. Three of those five losses were by double digits.
“As I lead, I have to lead these guys and get them ready for the next game,” SU head coach Adrian Autry noted. “Get ready for the next game, that’s my approach.”
Under Coach Autry’s leadership since 2023, the Orange have an overall record of 49-47, including a 24-34 mark against ACC opponents. This regular season certainly didn’t help with SU only winning a third of its ACC games. After this season, it marks back to back years where the Orange finished the season with a below .500 regular season record for the first time since the 1967-69 seasons.
“It’s been some progress…the progress I made since I’ve been here,” Coach Autry said after being asked about his feelings heading into the tournament. “It’s been slow progress, not the progress we wanna see, but I think we’ve been slowly progressing in the right direction.”
In the conference tournament, Syracuse has won just one of three games in the Autry era and are 5-9 since joining the ACC back in 2013. SU has also never won more than one game in the tournament, which the program did in 2022 and just last season.
“Typically, when you get in a season that you know we’re having, disappointment is always there,” Coach Autry stated. “You wanna have some things to build on, but it’s about results.”
In a season full of lows, one high has been Syracuse’s Donnie Freeman. The sophomore clearly led SU this season, averaging 17 points per game, five more than the second leading scorer, Nate Kingz. Freeman had eight outings where he scored 20 points or more, but might be facing some nerves in Charlotte. The forward is playing in his first-ever ACC tournament game as his season last year was cut short due to a lower-body injury in January.
Along with Freeman, guard Nate Kingz has stepped up in his senior year with the Orange. Kingz dropped 13 points, along with his most valuable two-pointer coming inside the paint with seconds to spare last time against SMU. The SU guard has averaged 12 points this season.
Similar to Syracuse, SMU’s recent streak has been full of four straight losses. The Mustangs also allowed 90 or more points in two of those games which adds up as they are the worst defensive team in the ACC giving up an average of 78 points per game. If you look at only during ACC play, Syracuse ranks second-worst on that list while SMU is in fourth-to-last.
On Tuesday, @CuseMBB takes on @SMUBasketball in the first round of the ACC tournament. The matchup between the Orange and the Mustangs earlier this season ended in SU's favor.@DanPapillo and @joshrichy_04 aren't sure if The 'Cuse can get the win again.
— WAER Sports Talk (@WAERSportsTalk) March 8, 2026
📻88.3 FM… pic.twitter.com/191SfzUqhc
“It’s been difficult, especially towards the end of the season,” Coach Autry said about his team's defense. “This defense has been struggling a little bit.”
Gametime for this round one matchup in the ACC tournament is set inside the Spectrum Center down in Charlotte, NC at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Tune in starting at 4 p.m. with McClurg Remodeling Countdown to Tipoff on 88.3 FM and waer.org.
