‘Defense was not the issue’: SU improves against UVA, but only in 1 area
Adrian Autry expressed that Syracuse’s defense is trending in the right direction despite its loss to No. 18 Virginia. Tara Deluca | Asst. Photo Editor
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Since the start of Atlantic Coast Conference play, Syracuse’s trademark defense has become a shell of itself. Head coach Adrian Autry wants his team to harness a defensive-minded, gritty identity. Yet, the Orange have conceded an average of 77.7 points per game in ACC play, a far cry from when they silenced then-No. 13 Tennessee to 60.
On the day SU’s defense finally showed up big again, at least according to Autry, its offense failed to match.
Syracuse (13-11, 4-7 ACC) limited No. 18 Virginia (20-3, 9-2 ACC) to 41% shooting and induced 20 misses from 3-point range, but it hardly mattered as the Orange lost 72-59 — their sixth defeat in their last seven tries. Still, Autry deployed a few personnel and strategic changes to activate SU’s defense, which did well at keeping the Cavaliers at bay Saturday afternoon.
UVA finished its win over Syracuse tied for its second-lowest offensive output of the ACC slate.
“Our defense was really good. I didn’t think we lost the game because of our defense,” Autry said. “We had some breakdowns, of course, but I thought the defense was not the issue.”
Virginia’s first-year head coach Ryan Odom, who has re-instilled the program’s defensive excellence following the shocking retirement of NCAA champion coach Tony Bennett, credited Autry and Co. for developing a solid strategy to thwart the Cavaliers’ offense.
“Syracuse played a pretty good game today and had a good plan coming in and kept us off-balance offensively,” Odom said postgame. “With the switching of the presses and (being) in the (2-3) zone a little bit, I thought they did a nice job overall …
“It was a tight game, obviously. And it could’ve gone either direction.”
Leaning on its defense, Syracuse pulled within four points of Virginia in the final minutes, trailing 61-57 at the 5:10 mark. But down the stretch, the Cavaliers clamped the Orange and hit a few open jumpers to stow the game away, highlighted by a Chance Mallory 3-pointer with 2:17 left.
The 2-3 zone gave Odom’s squad a bit of confusion. Then, after Virginia settled in against SU’s signature look, marked by a 12-0 run midway through the first half, Autry’s squad displayed man-to-man defensive sets for the majority of the remaining time.
The best thing Syracuse did on defense was force a litany of low-percentage shots. Virginia scores 36.7% of its points from beyond the arc, one of the highest rates in the country, and even though UVA splashed 10 3s Saturday, SU killed its rhythm numerous times off quality contests on 3-pointers and trapping guards on the perimeter to induce errant passes.
Syracuse caused 10 turnovers and held Virginia to a 10-for-30 clip from 3-point range. After a 6-for-14 start, UVA shot 4-for-16 (25%) from 3 the rest of the way.
One thing the Orange were frustrated with, though, was allowing the Cavaliers to haul in 17 offensive rebounds. As senior guard Nate Kingz said postgame, Virginia’s success on the offensive glass kept Syracuse’s defense from exerting its dominance.
“It’s like, our first initial defense is great,” Kingz said. “And then when they get the rebound, it’s tough.”
Autry also experimented with tweaks to his rotation. He notably didn’t play freshman guard Kiyan Anthony, likely due to defensive inefficiencies. He also barely played freshman forward Sadiq White Jr., who often finds himself in foul trouble.
Instead, bench guard Bryce Zephir and center Akir Souare logged eight minutes each against Virginia. Autry said Zephir is a physical, tough guard who helped SU play man-to-man easier. At the same time, Souare earned a little more time because of UVA’s immense size, led by 7-footer Johann Grünloh and 6-foot-9 forward Thijs De Ridder. Souare helped clog the middle of the floor during his few stints on the floor.
“We’re trying to figure out the right ingredients,” Autry said. “And I thought today our defense was really good.”
But as the Orange’s NCAA Tournament hopes continue slipping away, Autry might be a little too late to have come up with his ideal defensive formula. Plus, he’s still grappling with an inconsistent offense — seemingly an impossible equation to solve.
