From Rock Bottom to Resurgence: Syracuse Women’s Basketball’s Wild Week
By Adam Hipsky | @adamhipsky
In the span of seven days, Syracuse women’s basketball went from a devolving 41-point loss to an unranked Boston College squad to nearly upsetting a top-20 team and then finally securing its first ACC road win of the season. It was a roller coaster stretch that tested the team’s resilience, but after a week of highs and lows, the Orange may have found their fight.
This week epitomized the roller coaster of college basketball for Syracuse. It contained its worst loss in the Felisha Legette-Jack era, a near upset, and a gritty road win. But you can’t tell the story of Syracuse’s hard-nosed 12-point win at Clemson without first revisiting the games that made it so significant.
First, the wake up call in Chestnut Hill. The’ Cuse was flat out dismantled by BC and was handed its worst loss in four years. Syracuse didn’t have its leading scorer Georgia Woolley and the absence was felt greatly off the bat, getting outscored in the first quarter by 23 points. After suffering a loss of that magnitude, picking up the pieces and getting this team back on the right foot next time out seemed like a steep challenge, given the bout with 20th ranked NC State.
Then came signs of life. Woolley’s return was a boost, but the Orange still faced an NC State squad near the top of the ACC. Not only did Syracuse compete, but SU was in the driver’s seat to win for most of the game. A late game collapse prevented the Orange from a win, but it felt like there was a massive step in the right direction taken despite the level of the opponent
“We shut the noise down. You can tell we put our heads down… and show that we can come back from a 40 point loss to taking a top 20 team to the final minutes,” said ‘Cuse head coach Felisha Legette-Jack.
The mindset had clearly shifted after Boston College, but now Syracuse had to prove it—this time, away from home. This time around though, the Orange would be fully healthy, and instead of the Northeast, they took a trip to the Southeast in hopes of picking up that statement victory.
“I just know that these kids in the locker room have been percolating and really working hard to understand each other and become a sisterhood.” said Legette-Jack.
Syracuse put that sisterhood to the test—and prevailed. This win had a little bit of everything, and many positive takeaways for SU to bring back to central New York. The Orange defense put together their best quarter of the season to close out the first half, holding the Tigers scoreless for eight minutes of game action. The defense didn’t hold up all game, but when Clemson surged, Syracuse kept pace and closed it out
After a whirlwind of a week for Syracuse, where does it go from here? The Orange still stand at 16th in the ACC, which would not qualify for a berth in Greensboro for the conference tournament. The silver lining though for SU, its just one game out from 11th. With nine games left, and plenty of winnable contests – five against squads with sub .500 records in league play – Syracuse is in a fine spot to make the ACC tournament. If there are still somehow any expectations the Orange play beyond that, well, don’t get your hopes up.
The question looms: Has Syracuse truly turned a corner, or is another twist in the roller coaster ahead?
