Syracuse Basketball: Jim Boeheim totally trashes defense vs. Pittsburgh

Syracuse basketball held a five-point advantage at halftime on the road against Pittsburgh in the teams’ Atlantic Coast Conference rematch on Saturday afternoon from the Petersen Events Center.

Then, the Orange defense, both in transition and within the 2-3 zone, completely fell apart after intermission. The ‘Cuse allowed a whopping 64 points in the second half and got outscored by 25 points, with Pitt prevailing by a final count of 96-76.

With this ugly setback, Syracuse basketball drops to 7-4 overall and 1-3 in league competition. The Panthers, meanwhile, improve to 7-2 and 3-1 in conference clashes.

To some extent, this game mirrored Pittsburgh’s win over the Orange 10 days ago from the Carrier Dome, although the scoring margin in the second stanza of that encounter wasn’t quite as drastic.

On Jan. 6 in Central New York, the ‘Cuse found itself up by 14 points at the break, but the Panthers dominated on the glass and in second-chance points after intermission, outscoring the Orange by 17 points to come out on top by three points.

Saturday afternoon in Pittsburgh, though, the home team absolutely destroyed Syracuse basketball in the final 20 minutes. Giving up 64 points is atrocious, and the Panthers produced points in a variety of manners, including 3-points shots, put-backs via the offensive glass, and relatively easy dunks out in transition.

Syracuse basketball boss Jim Boeheim was disgusted with the ‘Cuse defense against Pittsburgh.

In his post-game Zoom call with media members, head coach Jim Boeheim said that the Orange’s defense, to put it mildly, was awful. Sure, the ‘Cuse offense struggled from beyond the arc yet again, and Pittsburgh handled the Orange on the boards.

But, as Boeheim noted, the team’s offense wasn’t the problem, as it did collect 76 points and only committed several turnovers. The issue is that Syracuse basketball, at every position on the floor, couldn’t get any stops in the second half, and the Panthers in essence did whatever they wanted, Boeheim said, clearly displeased.

Boeheim has served as head coach of the ‘Cuse for more than four decades, and he said of the Orange’s defense, particularly in the second half, this is “probably the worst I’ve seen it since I’ve been here.”

In his virtual call, Boeheim said it was “foolish” to talk about offense in the Pittsburgh game, as Syracuse basketball exhibited a “complete team breakdown defensively.”

Boeheim said that, to date in the 2020-21 campaign, the Orange has been in every game on its schedule, not getting blown out until Saturday afternoon versus the Panthers.

Plus, the ‘Cuse was even winning at halftime, so the team has to find a way to put this disaster behind it, Boeheim said. Syracuse basketball is slated to host Miami on Tuesday, Jan. 19, from the Carrier Dome at 7 pm.

Sophomore forward Quincy Guerrier, who posted a double-double of 18 points and 13 rebounds, said in the post-game Zoom call that Pittsburgh came out with much more energy in the second half than the Orange did.

Syracuse basketball players, on defense, have to move their feet better and work together as a collective unit, Guerrier said. Everyone on the team also has to “stay positive,” he added.