#22/18 Orange Travels To #2 Notre Dame

22/18 Syracuse (22-4, 10-3) vs. 2/2 Notre Dame (25-1, 13-0)
Game Details	Tuesday, Feb. 26\| South Bend, Ind. \| 7 p.m. Purcell Pavilion \| Tickets \| Directions
Game Coverage	TV: CBS Sports Network Radio: ESPN 97.7 FM/1200 AM (Brian Higgins), WJPZ 89.1 FM Orange All Access: Listen \| UND.com: Live Stats Twitter: @SyracuseWBB \| @Cuse Facebook: /SyracuseWBB
Syracuse Links	Game Notes \| Roster \| Schedule \| Stats
Notre Dame Links	Game Notes \| Roster \| Schedule \| Stats

No. 22/18 Syracuse women's basketball (22-4, 10-3) travels to South Bend, Ind. to take on No. 2/2 Notre Dame in the Orange's final road game of the regular season. Tip-off at Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center is 7 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.

• Syracuse has its best record in program history through 26 games and its best record through 12 conference games in 25 years.
• SU's 10-3 BIG EAST record is third in the conference standings behind Notre Dame (13-0) and Connecticut (12-1), and is a half ahead of Louisville (10-4).
• The Orange is coming off a 68-66 loss at USF on Saturday, snapping a six-game conference winning streak, tied for the longest in program history.
• Syracuse is ranked No. 22 in the Associated Press Poll and is No. 18 in the latest USA TODAY Coaches Poll, its highest ranking ever in either major poll.

GAME COVERAGE
• The game is being televised on CBS Sports Network with Brent Stover and Debbi Antonelli on the call (channels 242 and 815 on Syracuse Time Warner Cable).
• All the Orange's games can be heard live on SU's flagship station, ESPN 97.7 FM/1200 AM, and on Orange All-Access at SUAthletics.com with Brian Higgins '04 on the call. Tuesday's game will also be on WJPZ 89.1 FM.
• SUAthletics.com will have free live audio and live stats.
• As always, follow @SyracuseWBB on Twitter for live in-game updates.

AN ORANGE WIN WOULD...
• ...be SU's first over the Fighting Irish since 2001-02 and snap a 13-game skid.
• ...be SU's first ever victory at Notre Dame.
• ...make SU 23-4 for the first time in program history, two games better than the previous best through 27 games, 21-6 in 1980-81 and 2007-08.
• ...give SU 23 or more wins for the fourth time in program history.
• ...make SU 11-3 in BIG EAST play for just the third time in program history and first time in 25 years, tying the school record set in 1985-86 and 1987-88.

BEST START IN PROGRAM HISTORY
• Syracuse's 22-4 record is the program's best ever after 26 games, surpassing 2007-08, Quentin Hillsman's second season as head coach, and 1980-81 when it was 20-6. It has also already matched last year's total (22-15).
• In the BIG EAST, Syracuse's 10-3 mark ties its second-best ever record after 13 games behind its 11-2 mark in 1987-88). SU was last 10-3 in 1986-87.
• SU blitzed through its non-conference slate with 12-1 record, tied for the second-best regular season non-conference record in program history.
• The Orange went 13-0 in regular season non-conference games in 2009-10. This season's 12-1 mark matches 2007-08 and 2010-11.

ALEXANDER: SETTING RECORDS
• Senior center Kayla Alexander continues to rewrite the SU record book as she cements herself as one of the greatest players in program history. She became SU's all-time leading scorer on Jan. 26 at Villanova, passing Nicole Michael's (2007-10) 1,787 points with a layup at the 1:03 mark of the first half, finishing the game with 1,791.
• Following her 11-point effort at USF on Saturday, she currently sits at 1,891 career points, third-most among active BIG EAST players (Sugar Rodgers - 2,392, Skylar Diggins - 2,148).
• Alexander had 13 points and 10 rebounds on Feb. 12's win over Georgetown for her ninth double-double of the season and 28th of her career, the most of any active BIG EAST player.
• Earlier this season, she also became SU's all-time leader in field goals made, free throws made and blocks.
• She has twice been BIG EAST Player of the Week (Nov. 19, Dec. 10) and four times to the weekly honor roll.
• Alexander scored a career-high 34 points, single-handedly outscoring Wagner in SU's 66-28 win on Dec. 4. Her night included a Carrier Dome-record 14 field goals made. It was the most points scored in a game by an SU player since Nicole Michael's 36 vs. Binghamton on Nov. 22, 2009.
• Alexander passed Holly Oslander (1989-94) to become Syracuse's all-time blocks leader with eight rejections in the opener vs. Fairleigh Dickinson (11/11). She now has 342 to Oslander's 262.
• Alexander, a two-time All-BIG EAST selection and preseason All-Conference honoree, leads the Orange in scoring (16.9 ppg), rebounding (8.3 rpg) and blocks (3.3 bpg), ranking fourth, third and first, respectively, in the BIG EAST.

HIGHEST RANKING EVER FOR THE 'CUSE
• SU is ranked No. 18 in the latest USA TODAY Coaches Poll, its highest ranking ever in either of the major polls by three spots. The previous best was No. 21 (AP - 2/18/13 & 2/11/08).
• Syracuse is ranked No. 22 in this week's AP top 25 poll, down one spot from last week when it tied its highest AP ranking ever. This is the Orange's fourth straight week being ranked by the AP.

ORANGE ROAD SHOW
• The Orange is a combined 10-4 in away and neutral site games this season.
• Syracuse opened the season by playing seven of eight games away from the Carrier Dome, going 6-1, including 4-1 on the opponent's court. SU's 4-0 away-game record in November was the best among all BCS conference teams, ahead of Arkansas (3-0) and Arizona (3-0). Its 6-0 record in neutral-site and away games combined was also the best among major conference teams.
• Going back to last season, SU played 15 out of 16 away from home between the regular season finale on Feb. 27 and this season's eighth game on Dec. 2.
• The Orange's 10-5 record on the road in 2011-12 was the best in program history in terms of wins and is the best in terms of winning percentage (.667) since 1978-79 (7-1, .875).
• In last season's WNIT, Syracuse won four consecutive away games for the first time in 22 years.

SERIES HISTORY
• Syracuse is 2-25 all-time against Notre Dame, including an 0-12 record in South Bend.
• Notre Dame won 13 in a row in the series, dating back to an 84-79 Syracuse victory No. 21/25 Irish on March 3, 2002 in the BIG EAST Tournament at Rutgers.
• In last season's meeting, on Feb. 7, 2012, the Orange cut an 19-point halftime deficit down to 10 in the second half, but could draw no closer in a 74-55 loss at the Carrier Dome. Iasia Hemingway led SU with 15 points, while Devereaux Peters had 21 points and 16 rebounds for ND. Kayla McBride added 19 points.
• The last time the teams played at Purcell Pavilion, on Feb. 1, 2011, No. 8 Notre Dame beat the No. 25 Orange, 71-48. Kayla Alexander scored a game-high 19 points for SU, while Peters had 15 points and 11 rebounds for the home team.

SCOUTING NOTRE DAME
• Notre Dame is 25-1 overall, including a 13-0 BIG EAST record. It is ranked No. 2 in both major polls and sits atop the conference standings.
• The Fighting Irish are riding a 20-game winning streak following its lone loss of the season, 73-61, vs. then-No. 3 Baylor on Dec. 5. The Bears also defeated the Irish in the 2012 national title game.
• Senior All-American guard Skylar Diggins leads the Irish in scoring at 16.2 ppg, and is tops in the BIG EAST in assists with 5.8 per game. She is coming off a triple-double on Sunday at DePaul (17-10-10).
• Kayla McBride adds 14.2 ppg, while 6-3 forward Natalie Achonwa contributes 13.9 points and 9.2 rebounds per contest.
• Muffet McGraw is in her 26th season at ND and 31st overall. She led the Irish to the last two national title games and the 2001 championship.

LAST TIME OUT
• Akila McDonald's basket with 24 seconds left gave USF a 68-66 comeback victory over Syracuse on Saturday afternoon at the USF Sun Dome. The Bulls erased a 13-point second-half Orange lead for the win.
• USF's Andrea Smith led all scorers with 18 points and added nine rebounds. SU was led by Carmen Tyson-Thomas' 17 points, 15 of which came in the first half. Brittney Sykes added 12 points and eight boards, while Kayla Alexander scored nine of her 11 points in the second half. Rachel Coffey dished out six assists for the Orange.
• A 15-0 Syracuse run that spanned the final 2:32 of the first half and the first 46 seconds of the second half gave the Orange the largest lead of the game by both sides, 13 points, 39-26, but the Bulls whittled away at its deficit.
• Syracuse shot 45.5 percent from the field, including 5-of-16 behind the arc, while USF shot 35.4 percent, including 11-of-28 from 3-point range. The Orange scored 21 points off 13 Bulls turnovers, but USF pulled down 17 offensive rebounds, leading to a 20-9 edge in second-chance points.

THE ORANGE ZONE
• When people think 2-3 zone, they think Syracuse, and the women's program is adding to that lore in 2012-13. The Orange is holding its opponents to the second-lowest shooting percentage in the BIG EAST (.340).
• The Orange is also proving wrong the myth that zone teams are susceptible to 3-point shooting. SU is holding its opponents to the worst 3-point shooting percentage in the league (.267).

MASTER THIEVES
• Syracuse's fullcourt pressure defense and aggressive 2-3 zone in the halfcourt have resulted in the Orange leading the BIG EAST and ranking third nationally in steals, averaging 13.4 per game.
• Syracuse's opponents are averaging 21.6 turnovers per game, resulting in a +5.04 turnover margin. The Orange is scoring 22.0 points per game off turnovers.
• SU recently had an 18-steal effort at Georgetown on Feb. 12 in which it forced 27 turnovers.
• SU set a Carrier Dome record for the second time this season, recording 22 steals vs. Providence on Feb. 2, breaking the mark of 21 steals against Boise State on Dec. 30. The Dome record prior to this season was 20 on Dec. 14, 2008 vs. Niagara. The program record is 31 (vs. Marist on Jan. 11, 1980).
• SU's thievery has been a balanced effort, with Elashier Hall (2.3), Brittney Sykes (2.2 per game) leading the way.

UP NEXT
• Syracuse returns home to host Villanova on Saturday in a 3 p.m. tip-off. The game is the back half of a doubleheader at the Carrier Dome with the men's team facing Louisville at noon. SU closes the regular season on Monday, March 4 vs. Louisville in a 9 p.m. Senior Night tip on CBS Sports Network.

Syracuse University Athletics

Next Event

Related Videos