Freebies the Achilles Heel of 'Cuse

There are 365 teams in NCAA Division 1 Men's Basketball.

Enough teams to equal the amount of days in a year.

Of those teams, 364 of them are above the Syracuse Orange program in free-throw percentage, with the Orange last in the nation in percentage of freebies made, at 58%, through their first 11 games of the season.

This is the breakdown of Syracuse's free-throw performances this season in those 11 games:

Versus Binghamton - 11-for-16

Versus Delaware State - 11-for-21

Versus Drexel on neutral court - 11-for-15

Versus Monmouth - 19-for-33

Versus Houston on neutral court - 12-for-29

Versus Kansas on neutral court - 13-for-23

Versus Iowa State on neutral court - 12-for-19

Versus Tennessee - 13-for-22

Versus Saint Joseph's - 15-for-28

Versus Hofstra - 9-for-16

Versus Mercyhurst - 12-for-16

A free shot...

With no one guarding you...

A 10-second time period to just have you and the basket...

On a mid-range attempt...

That has become the toughest shot for the Orange to put in the basket, leading to losses, close calls, and teams realizing that if you foul Syracuse down the stretch, you may just keep yourself alive in the fight.