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Nothing much has gone right for Syracuse this season. Its second year under head coach Adrian Autry has been nothing short of a disaster. The Orange entered their game against Georgia Tech Tuesday without a win over a Power Five program and 0-3 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

With just one win in their past four games, Autry made a change. He opted for J.J. Starling — who returned Saturday after missing seven games with a hand injury — at point guard instead of Jaquan Carlos. Donnie Freeman was also absent from the starting lineup, but not by choice. The freshman was ruled out pregame with a foot injury, and Jyáre Davis started in his place.

The lineup shift propelled Syracuse (7-8, 1-3 ACC) to a 62-55 win over Georgia Tech (8-8, 2-3 ACC), yet it was anything but pretty. SU posted its second-worst shooting performance in a win this season (41.3%) and only made four 3-pointers. Without Freeman, SU’s already handicapped offense was down one of its most versatile scorers. Just five Syracuse players scored, though Starling (21 points) made enough plays down the stretch to help the Orange avoid starting 0-4 in the ACC for the first time since 2015-16.

“I was just proud of our toughness,” Autry said postgame. “We didn’t shoot the ball well, but we just kind of found a way to gut it out.”

Autry summed it up perfectly. Syracuse gutted it out. The Orange didn’t play very eye-catching basketball Tuesday. But it didn’t matter. They were desperate for a win after dropping their first three ACC games to Notre Dame, Wake Forest and Florida State, none of whom are world beaters in the conference. It marked the first time under Autry Syracuse dropped three straight ACC games. It lost twice in a row just three times last season.

Tuesday’s win didn’t by any means put Syracuse on course for a successful season. What it did was steady what seemed to be a sinking ship. And the Orange did so by trusting Starling.

Following Starling’s absence, there was no grace period for him to get back into the flow of things. Syracuse desperately needed his versatility on offense after going 2-5 without him. The point guard returned Saturday against Florida State, putting up 12 points on 31% shooting in the defeat.

Tuesday was a much more efficient performance (9-of-16 shooting), and Starling made key plays down the stretch. Syracuse led by six with 4:20 remaining when Starling missed a teardrop floater in the lane. Eddie Lampkin Jr. pulled in an offensive rebound, kicking it to Chris Bell on the wing. Bell airballed a 3, but Starling was there for a put-back to make it 52-44. The bucket gave Syracuse its largest lead to that point.

Scores from Lance Terry and Naithan George, who led GT in scoring with 18 and 13 points, respectively, cut Syracuse’s lead down to four with 1:14 left.

Starling controlled the ball at the block “S” at midcourt, refusing a screen from Davis. He drove to his right before being cut off by Terry. Starling stopped on a dime and hit a tough fadeaway jumper.

“If you followed us through the stretch without him and having him back now, you can see the difference and see how important he is for us,” Autry said of Starling.

When Georgia Tech responded by cutting SU’s lead back down to four, the ball was in Starling’s hands again. He bled the clock, making his move with 42 seconds left, once again driving right. This time, two Georgia Tech defenders went with him, leaving Davis open at the top of the key. The Delaware transfer hit a one-dribble pull-up jumper as Syracuse’s lead was pushed to two possessions with 48 seconds left.

With Davis not having the same shooting capabilities as Freeman, it can create clunkiness in the halfcourt at times playing alongside Lampkin. The two-big lineup sometimes crowds the paint with two non-shooters on the floor, which can lead to turnovers. Against Georgia Tech, Syracuse had 18 turnovers — the fifth straight game it had at least 15 — but the Orange went the final 7:31 with one giveaway.

Cheap turnovers were a problem for SU in the first half, while made shots were few and far between. It had one less turnover (10) than it did field goals (11), though it never trailed and led 25-24 at halftime. Across the first 20 minutes, Starling, Bell and Taylor scored all but two of Syracuse’s points.

Bell, who finished with 13, continues to put himself back on track after a horrid December. Over the past month, the junior has struggled. He went six games without a 3-pointer, prompting Autry to move him to the bench for the FSU game. The decision worked, as Bell scored 18 points, going 4-of-4 from downtown. Bell didn’t get hot from deep on Tuesday, finishing 1-of-5, but he did have a stretch in the first half where he scored seven straight points.

“We need him to score for this team to be successful,” Autry said of Bell.

After not trailing in the first half, Syracuse allowed Georgia Tech to jump in front 30-29 three-and-a-half minutes into the second. However, the Yellow Jackets’ largest lead would be just three with 11:05 remaining. Starling knotted the game at 38 with Syracuse’s only 3-pointer in the second half before Lampkin (10 points) scored down low to give the Orange a lead they’d never surrender.

“Tonight really felt like we put it together for 40 minutes,” Starling said.

With Syracuse’s lack of success this season, there’s been a lot of “noise” from displeased fans, especially on social media. Autry alluded to it postgame while Starling went more in-depth, saying, “They weren’t really with us” and “At the end of the day, we’re the ones putting in the work every day. So we gotta do what’s best for us.”

Starling added that he stays off social media no matter if he has a good game or not. He knows fans don’t have insight into the work he and his teammates put in every day, so he just blocks the noise out.

The only way to truly quiet the so-called “noise” is win. Syracuse hasn’t done much of that this season, which is why it’s been so prevalent. If Syracuse can repeat its result Tuesday consistently, then it won’t give its critics the ammo they need.

Published on January 7, 2025 at 9:22 pm

Contact Zak: zakwolf784254@gmail.com | @ZakWolf22