END OF AN ERA

By Anthony Alandt senior staff writer

After the culmination of his 47th season at the helm for the Orange, Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim will no longer coach Syracuse, according to a press release from Syracuse Athletics. The 77-74 loss to Wake Forest in the second round of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament — which moved his final season to a 17-15, 10-10 ACC record — marked his final game as the head coach of the Orange. Associate head coach Adrian Autry will take over as head coach.

Speculation of 78-year-old Boeheim’s retirement has swirled for nearly a decade, with an announced succession plan in place for then-assistant head coach Mike Hopkins. He ultimately ditched the plan in 2016 when it was announced that Boeheim signed an extension with the Orange through the 2021-22 season. At the same time, Boeheim’s youngest son, Buddy Boeheim, commit- ted to Syracuse and Boeheim scrapped his announced plan to retire in April of 2018.

Boeheim went on to get bounced in the first round of the NCAA Tournament the next season, see a .500 ACC team get its season cut short by COVID-19 and miss the postseason altogether for the first time under his tutelage. Calls for his retirement mounted after Syracuse finished 16-17, but he told syracuse.com that he was staying for at least another season, and that there was “a plan in place” for a successor — SU’s second such plan in the last 10 years.

Amidst a season in which he played six true freshmen, relied on Joe Girard III’s inconsistent shooting and depended on the rebounding ability of an undersized Jesse Edwards, Boeheim chided against the new era of name, image and likeness, calling out some ACC foes and saying that they “bought a team.” He also clung to a 2-3 zone that saw the Orange allow the most 3-pointers in the conference, at times calling out his players — before eventually calling out himself — for not having the skill