Syracuse basketball's defense was awful on Saturday night in a five-point loss at Wake Forest, and head coach Adrian Autry didn't shy away from calling out his players for their lack of toughness and their inability to get the job done on the defensive end of the floor.
Before any fans lash out at Autry, who is likely going to be fired at the end of the 2025-26 season, it's important to note that in his post-game press conference, Autry also held himself accountable, at least to a certain extent, for his program's defensive woes.
"I’m going to take my accountability, for sure," Autry said. "And I’ve got to do a better job to get them to understand. But the toughness part, you gotta have it. You gotta have it."
Orange fans have been ripping into Autry and his staff for a while now, amid SU's struggles that have left Syracuse basketball (15-14 overall, 6-10 in ACC) nowhere near the bubble for the NCAA Tournament.
Unless the 'Cuse wins this month's ACC Tournament in Charlotte, N.C., the program will miss the annual Big Dance for the fifth straight season. Autry, in his three terms at the squad's helm after replacing the legendary Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim, has an overall record of just 49-45.
Head coach Adrian Autry criticized Syracuse basketball players' lack of toughness.
While I can understand Autry calling out his players for allowing the Demon Deacons to shoot better than 56 from both the field as a whole and from beyond the arc in Wake Forest's 88-83 victory on Saturday, SU's head coach and his assistants have to take some of the blame too, right?
In any event, Autry acknowledged that the Orange's defense has "been a struggle all year for us ... In college, you gotta be tough. You gotta do tough things. You gotta make tough plays. You gotta have resistance. You gotta be able to defend."
It wasn't just the defense. Wake Forest isn't a stellar rebounding group, yet the Demon Deacons held a sizable 30-18 edge over the 'Cuse on the glass. Wake Forest had 10 offensive rebounds, and it led Syracuse basketball 16-9 in second-chance points.
From my perspective, the biggest frustration with this Orange team is that some players don't always hustle and give their full effort. Opponents could be blowing SU out, yet these foes are the ones diving on the court for 50/50 balls, not the 'Cuse. That lack of energy is extremely discouraging to see.
“That's been a challenge all year - to get people to care about that end of the floor and not only the offensive end of the floor," Autry said. "Until that mindset changes, our results are going to be mixed."
Considering that Syracuse basketball has just two regular-season games remaining, and then the ACC Tournament, it might be a little late for the team's "mindset" to change at this juncture.