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LAS VEGAS — Adrian Autry gave pretty simple advice to Tyler Betsey Monday upon his return from missing one game with an ankle injury.

“He’s been playing well for us,” Syracuse’s third-year head coach said. “We just encouraged him to continue to be aggressive again.”

Aggressive doesn’t even begin to describe Betsey’s display to open the Players Era Festival against No. 3 Houston. When he got the ball, he’d be damned if he wasn’t shooting. Especially from beyond the arc. He drained 3-of-4 3-pointers to begin the game en route to an 11-point first half. Even when he slowed down for most of the second half, Betsey released shot after shot.

Three consecutive misses didn’t faze Betsey, who drained a game-tying 3-pointer from the right wing with 54.6 seconds left in regulation to force overtime against the Cougars. Syracuse (4-1, Atlantic Coast) couldn’t hold on in the extra period against the reigning NCAA runner-up Houston (6-0, Big 12) in a 78-74 loss. But Betsey’s spark provided a welcome sign for an SU team that needs more playmakers — particularly in crunch time.

The ankle injury is clearly behind Betsey now. That’s good news for Autry, who had to adjust his lineup hours before Monday’s tipoff when Orange star forward Donnie Freeman was ruled out of the entire Players Era tournament due to a lower-body injury.

All of a sudden, a different forward in Betsey proved imperative in SU having a realistic shot at upsetting Houston.

“You see how good this team is and how talented this team is,” Autry said, using Betsey’s talent as a prime example.

Autry went on to lament Syracuse’s loss, saying there are no moral victories.

If there ever was one, though, it’s how Betsey helped spur the Orange to their best stretch of basketball since Autry took over for Jim Boeheim in 2023-24.

From William Kyle III winning the opening tip to the 10:56 mark of the first half, SU built a 20-12 lead over the heavily-favored Cougars. Seven of those points came from the red-hot right hand of Betsey — who finished with a team-best 16 points on 4-of-8 3-point shooting.

First, Betsey took advantage of a transition chance after Houston’s Milos Uzan threw a bad pass that Kiyan Anthony scooped up. Anthony’s eyes instantly darted to Betsey spotting up for a 3-pointer in the left corner, where he drained his first long ball of the evening. That 3 gave Syracuse a 12-10 lead. A minute and a half later, Betsey drilled another 3-ball from the wing, releasing without hesitation after a feed from J.J. Starling.

After he splashed that second 3-pointer, Betsey’s mean-mug celebration made it apparent he knew he was on fire.

Fast forward to less than a minute remaining, when SU point guard Naithan George galloped downhill with the ball as the Orange trailed 67-64, he was only dishing to one man.

George faked as if he’d penetrate the lane, then dumped the ball behind him as Betsey ravenously called for it at the right wing, waving his hands to signal he was ready. He wrapped his fingers around the ball, calmly shimmied his lower-body to set his feet and let it rip.

Splash. Tie ballgame.

It was the kind of performance that prompted Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson to pause amid his postgame comments and address Syracuse’s execution, rather than his own team’s weak points. Sampson did feel as if the Cougars made too many silly mistakes — including their struggles to close out guys like Betsey from deep.

But Sampson was adamant the Orange were better than the final result suggests. Having a winning player who delivers in the clutch like Betsey is a significant reason why.

“Their kids played hard. They played good enough to win,” Sampson said. “(I’m) really impressed with Syracuse.”

Betsey’s teammate, Kyle, praised his shot-making ability against a Cougars squad that SU needed every bucket it could get on it.

“Absolutely huge,” Kyle said of Betsey’s performance. “Everyone on that roster (Houston) can play. And (Betsey) went out there and made big plays. It was no surprise, we know how great of a shooter he is.”

Back on May 2, Betsey transferred to Syracuse from Cincinnati. He only spent one year with the Bearcats and felt a change of scenery was necessary for him to take a sophomore leap.

The 6-foot-8 forward spent the entire 2024-25 season as a reserve with sparse playing time. He averaged a measly 3.3 points and 1.5 rebounds per game. In his conversations with Autry, assistant coach Allen Griffin and the rest of SU’s staff, Betsey expressed that he wanted to return to the player he was in high school: a two-time Connecticut Gatorade Player of the Year and relentless 3-and-D player.

Autry and Co. told Betsey he’d be in a spot at Syracuse where “making mistakes is fine.” That’s not to say they don’t demand excellence. But Betsey knew he’d receive plentiful opportunities to prove himself.

“The whole coaching staff in the offseason, just them encouraging me to shoot the ball or just be aggressive,” Betsey said on Oct. 15 at SU’s preseason media day. “It’s been a really good offseason.”

Five games in, Betsey has taken Syracuse’s staff’s advice to heart. And he nearly shocked Houston because of it.

Published on November 24, 2025 at 10:42 pm
Contact Cooper: ccandrew@syr.edu | @cooper_andrews