Kimball: SU’s turnaround was remarkable. The hard part will be sustaining it.
Syracuse experienced a remarkable turnaround this season, winning 23 games and earning a March Madness bid. Courtesy of The Atlantic Coast Conference
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On Sunday, Felisha Legette-Jack had something to say before the room filled with players, fans and media energized by Syracuse’s special season. After announcing Dominique Darius would undergo surgery for the left-hand injury she sustained in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament, Legette-Jack started her spiel.
Addressing SU’s mammoth matchup looming Saturday in Storrs, Connecticut, versus Iowa State, could wait. Legette-Jack instead recognized the strides Syracuse has taken. How bringing in Darius, Uche Izoje and Laila Phelia, among others, helped return the Orange to the Big Dance. Then, the head coach spoke about the future.
“We’re gonna win some games,” Legette-Jack started. “We’re gonna lose some games. But guess what we’re never gonna do. We’re never gonna quit.
“We will continue to see it through.”
A loud applause followed, revealing the extent of SU’s growth. Just a year ago, tears were shed at Syracuse’s postgame press conference after it capped a nightmarish season by blowing a 19-point lead in the first round of the ACC Tournament.
Now, an offseason haul featuring eight newcomers and greater buy-in from seven returners, per Journey Thompson, sparked the Orange’s (23-8, 12-6 ACC) second March Madness berth in the last three years. It was a remarkable turnaround, and more impressively, an unforeseen one. As Legette-Jack said, Syracuse saw it through. Now comes the harder part: sustaining the success.
The Orange weren’t supposed to be this good. Predicted 13th in the ACC Preseason Poll, their season was expected to end in a similar spot for the second successive year. Izoje was, respectfully, an enigma with no collegiate basketball experience. Phelia was recovering from a detached retina. Darius had barely seen the floor at UCLA and USC.
Attacking the portal is one thing. Attacking it and succeeding is another. It’s not easy to do; just look at Angelica Velez and Thompson’s lackluster 2024-25 campaigns. There was little reason to believe this year’s group would be different. Legette-Jack proved otherwise.
“This is what this game does,” Legette-Jack said Sunday regarding what her offseason acquisitions have brought to the program. “It’s a game that has no boundaries. It has no color. It has no sex. It just has fun and commitment to each other.”
It might not have boundaries, but it definitely has limits — especially financial ones. SU’s fourth-year head coach didn’t just make a few calls to field a competitive team. Building a contender requires resources, and she’s long fantasized over what Syracuse could become if given them. Before this season, it had all been talk. Now, it’s reality.
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The goal moving forward is making sure the turnaround isn’t temporary. Keeping a player like Izoje, who became Syracuse’s second-ever ACC Rookie of the Year, is a tall task. The 6-foot-3 freshman leads the Orange in points (15.5), rebounds (9.4) and blocks (2.6), and she’ll be a hot commodity when the portal opens on April 6.
In January, Legette-Jack spoke about the importance of funding in retaining players like Izoje. Syracuse and third-party entities are paying Izoje, but without continuous financial help, it’ll be difficult for Legette-Jack to “find the next Uche Izoje.” And keep the current one.
Yet Legette-Jack proved she can turn funding into positive production, and it may be convincing enough for Izoje to stay. Meanwhile, Darius is aiming for a sixth year of eligibility and even said she’d love to return to the Orange if her waiver is approved.
That foundation is something SU lacked last year. The Orange didn’t have a single player hit the portal after 2024-25, but did they really have a favorable resume? Not at all. A 12-18 team will do that for you, especially one that lost to mid-majors UAlbany and Saint Joseph’s.
This year, though, starting fresh was non-negotiable. Six players — all out of eligibility — departed, headlined by Georgia Woolley and Kyra Wood. Woolley was the Orange’s offensive cornerstone, and Wood, at the time, seemed like an irreplaceable big with 12 points and seven boards a game.
But Legette-Jack didn’t pout. She said she immediately began making phone calls and setting up visits. Nearly a year later, the proof is in the pudding. Syracuse has 11 more wins than it finished with last season and flipped its ACC record from 6-12 to 12-6.
The Orange are averaging nearly five more points per game on improved shooting efficiency, have built one of the most dangerous frontcourts in the ACC and have formed a new culture consisting of late-night phone calls to talk about basketball after a silent prior season.
The turnaround is helping Syracuse attract top recruits’ attention. Kaleena Smith — the No. 1-ranked player in the 2027 class — visited the JMA Wireless Dome on Feb. 8 when the Orange hosted Louisville. A player like Smith would be a monumental get for the program.
After last offseason’s success, there’s reason to believe Legette-Jack can make it happen. She has the history to back it up. She earned Dyaisha Fair’s commitment despite South Carolina, Miami and Arizona vying for the guard. Could Legette-Jack do the same with Smith?
Even if Smith doesn’t join the Orange, Legette-Jack can continue to move forward with other top recruits. She can also use the ones she currently has in her back pocket. Jasmyn Cooper became the head coach’s top commit last season, and four-star Camdyn Nelson was expected to take the reins of SU’s point guard position.
Although both players hovered around 10 minutes per game, they showed glimpses that remain key pieces of a puzzle Legette-Jack has proven she can put together.
Just look at last season for proof. Syracuse hadn’t capitalized on prior success in what Legette-Jack called a “rebuild” year, and it paid the price. It finished 14th in the ACC, and its schedule was marred with losses, including five different multi-game skids.
There wasn’t a margin for error this time around. Legette-Jack’s vision has always been to contend for a national title, and SU had to strengthen its core with firepower to make that a realistic possibility. The Orange got who they needed. They made a memorable run with it. That part is complete.
What comes next is ensuring Syracuse doesn’t let that progress go to waste.
“They said that we’re good enough to be here,” Legette-Jack said. “Now we gotta prove we’re good enough to stay.”
Jordan Kimball is an Assistant Sports Editor at The Daily Orange, where his column appears occasionally. He can be reached at jordankimball28@gmail.com or on X @JordanKimball_.
