Syracuse, N.Y. -- The Syracuse men's basketball team still sports a winning record with 11 wins and nine losses, but that's an unprecedented number of losses for the Orange.
Syracuse's 11-9 record represents the worst winning percentage through the season's first 20 games in Jim Boeheim's 41-year tenure as the Orange's head coach.
In fact, the Orange's 11-9 record is two games worse than any other 20-game mark for Syracuse in over 45 years.
Syracuse's record fell to 11-9 with its 84-66 loss to 15th-ranked Notre Dame. The visitors' locker room inside the Purcell Pavilion was quiet as the SU players responded to reporters' questions in hushed tones.
"We know it's disappointing,'' Syracuse sophomore guard Frank Howard said. "We're not going to sit here and act like it's something it's not. We know where we're at. I hope it puts us in the right mind-set. We can't come out and keep playing games like this.''
In the Boeheim coaching era, Syracuse's worst record through 20 games had been 13-7 until this season. The Orange had hit the 13-7 mark on five occasions. In four of those years -- 1981, 1982, 1997 and 2008 -- Syracuse missed the NCAA tournament and wound up playing in the NIT.
Last year, Syracuse got off to a 13-7 start, but managed to earn a bid to the NCAA tournament as a No. 10 seed. The Orange advanced to the Final Four.
At 11-9, Syracuse's postseason hopes are quickly fading. The Orange has just 11 regular season games remaining plus the ACC tournament. Syracuse will play five games against ranked teams in its last 11 contests. Those games, four of which are at the Carrier Dome, represent opportunity as much as they pose a challenge.
The last time Syracuse's record 20 games into the season stood at 11-9 was during the 1969-70 campaign. That was also the last time that Syracuse didn't appear in the postseason; be it the NCAA or NIT, in a year when it was eligible. Syracuse, which was in its second year under coach Roy Danforth, finished with a 12-12 record in 1970.
Adding to the Syracuse players' frustration is that this 11-9 record was so unexpected. Syracuse began the season ranked No. 19 in the Associated Press poll. Even Boeheim said this team had as much ability as any Syracuse team in recent years.
"Of course, it's frustrating,'' Syracuse freshman guard Tyus Battle said. "No one likes losing. We've just got to stick together and pull together and get some wins when we get back home.''
Syracuse's 11-9 start stands in stark contrast to recent seasons. In the five seasons from 2010 through 2014, Syracuse's record in the first 20 games of each season came to 95-5.
But this year, Syracuse is 11-9. A mark not seen in these parts since 1970.
"Everybody wants to win,'' SU senior Dajuan Coleman said. "As a team, you've got to understand there's going to be ups and downs. Now, we've just got to look forward to the next game. We have to focus on Wake Forest and go from there.''