SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Chaos at the Dome. Fans storming the court. Syracuse stunning #13 Tennessee. And in the middle of it all, a hometown kid who’s dreamed of this moment his entire life.
“That was amazing,” JJ Starling, a senior guard on Syracuse’s basketball team said. “You know, be able to have our work really pay off, especially in a big one like that. And then doing it in the community that we have. This is big time.”
Starling’s journey to this moment took the long way around. After growing up 20 minutes outside of Syracuse in Baldwinsville, he transferred to a high school in Indiana. He then spent his freshman year at Notre Dame. But the pull of home proved too strong. He transferred to Syracuse as a sophomore, finally getting to represent the city he grew up in.
“Just to have them (fans) cheer for our team as a whole, It means so much more to me,” Starling said.
Last season, Starling proved he belonged on this stage, averaging 17 points per game. This year, he missed a few games to start the season, but is finding his groove. As a senior leader, he averages nine points a game. But head coach Adrian Autry sees something more important: growth.
“Just so proud of him,” Autry said. “You know, being able to show you know the growth in his game.”
The growth is on the defensive end. Starling made a conscious decision to become a complete player, not just a scorer.
“Last year, I was more offensive-minded,” he said. “My energy was exerted on that. And therefore I had a lot of mental lapses on that and I knew I had to get better.”
“We’ve been challenging him on that end of the floor, so I was just really proud to see him step up,” Autry said.
When Syracuse needed buckets against Tennessee, Starling flipped the switch. With the game on the line, he delivered clutch shots in the closing minutes.
“The whole game, my teammates, my coaches are just saying be confident and just be aggressive. They really said that message at the end of the game. So I just honed in on that and just stayed mentally locked in,” Starling said.
For Starling, this senior season isn’t just about personal glory. It’s about proving doubters wrong and honoring the faith his teammates and coaches have shown in him.
“It definitely motivates me a lot. It’s just proving to myself, all the times that I didn’t trust the work that I would put in and all the confidence that my teammates and coaches have. To me, it’s just believing in that,” Starling said.
The work isn’t done. Starling and his teammates know they’re capable of more nights like they had against Tennessee.
“It just shows what we really could be and the things that we still need to work on, we got to be more consistent. But we are one of those teams that is considered highly ranked,” Starling said.