'Cuse Hosts Clemson on Thursday

--/rv Syracuse (13-5, 2-3) vs. Clemson (9-10, 1-4)
Game Details	Thursday, Jan. 23 \| 7 p.m. ET \| Syracuse, N.Y. Carrier Dome (35,012) \| Tickets \| Directions
Game Coverage	TV: Time Warner Cable SportsChannel (323) Watch: Orange All Access Radio: ESPN 97.7/100.1 FM & 1200 AM \| Orange All-Access Live Stats Twitter: @CuseWBB \| @cuse
Syracuse Links	Roster \| Schedule \| Stats \| Game Notes
Clemson Links	Roster \| Schedule \| Stats

Follow @CuseWBB
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Syracuse women's basketball (13-5, 2-3 ACC) returns home to host Clemson (9-10, 1-4 ACC) in a 7 p.m. tip-off on Thursday at the Carrier Dome.

GAME COVERAGE
• Thursday's game will be televised live on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel (323 in Central New York) with Mark Larson and Lorraine Schunck on the call.
• All games can be heard live on SU's flagship station, ESPN 97.7/100.7 FM, 1200 AM, and on Orange All-Access at SUAthletics.com with Brian Higgins '04 on the call.
• Free live stats are also available at SUathletics.com.
• As always, follow @CuseWBB on Twitter for live in-game updates.

PROFESSIONAL WOMEN OF SYRACUSE NIGHT
• Syracuse is hosting businesswomen from Syracuse and throughout Central New York at Thursday's game. A networking event for area professional women will take place from 6-7 p.m. at the Carrier Dome in Club 4-4.

STRONG START TO '13-14
• Syracuse went 11-2 in its non-conference schedule, the seventh time in program history the Orange was 11-2 or better after 13 games.
• An aggressive non-conference schedule, paired with a challenging start to the ACC slate has helped the Orange achieve a No. 16 ranking in the latest official NCAA RPI ratings, released on Jan. 20.
• Currently, RealTimeRPI ranks Syracuse No. 14, while the Sagarin/CBN Ratings have it 15th with the No. 3 strength-of-schedule in the country.

AN ORANGE WIN WOULD...
• ...be its first back-to-back ACC wins.
• ...make SU 2-0 all-time against Clemson and 1-0 vs. the Tigers at the Carrier Dome.
• ...make SU 9-1 at home this season and 22-2 over the last two seasons.

SERIES HISTORY
• Syracuse has won the only previous meeting between the two programs, 77-58, on Dec. 22, 2010 in the Bahamas Sunshine Shootout.
• Sophomore center Kayla Alexander and junior forward Iasia Hemingway both netted double-doubles in the win to earn Bahamas Sunshine Shootout All-Tournament Team accolades. Alexander led all scorers with 23 points while adding a team-best tying 10 rebounds and a pair of blocks. Hemingway added a season-best 21 points while corralling 10 boards, helping Syracuse win the rebounding battle, 45-33, and control the paint, 38-28.
• SU turned 19 Clemson turnovers into 24 points.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS
• Clemson is 9-10 overall and off to a 1-4 start to ACC play.
• The Tigers are ranked No. 171 in the latest NCAA RPI rankings released on Monday.
• Most recently, Clemson loss at home to Wake Forest, 68-61, on Monday. That followed at 78-55 loss at No. 9 North Carolina last Thursday.
• The Tiger's conference win came at home against Pittsburgh, 77-67, on Jan. 12.
• Nikki Dixon is Clemson's top scorer. The 5-10 junior guard/forward is scoring 13.3 points per game and is shooting 45 percent overall, including 28 percent (15-54) from 3-point range.
• Kelly Gramlich is the top outside shooting threat. The 5-10 junior guard is 39-of-106 from behind the arc and scores 8.0 ppg.
• Quinyotta Pettaway, a 6-3 senior forward, is the team's top rebounder (6.8 rpg) and scores 8.7 ppg. She averaged a near-double-double last season: 10.8 ppg and 8.9 rpg.
• Audra Smith (Virginia '92) is in her first season as head coach. The former UAB head coach took over a program that went 9-21 last season, includig a 5-13 mark in the ACC.

DOME SWEET DOME
• SU has a record of 84-33 (.718) in 117 games in the Carrier Dome since moving there full-time in 2006-07, including a 8-1 mark this season as it has outscored its opponents by an average of 25.0 ppg (82.4-57.4).
• SU went 13-1 at home last season, tied for its best home winning percentage in program history. The Orange also went 13-1 in 1987-88.

IN THE POLLS
• Syracuse is receiving votes in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll this week. It was previously ranked for five straight weeks in the AP poll and a total of three weeks in the coaches poll this season.
• The Orange was ranked an all-time program high 20th in the Dec. 23 and Dec. 30 AP polls. It was as high as No. 23 in the coaches poll four weeks ago.
• The Orange debuted in the AP poll on Dec. 2 at No. 22 and was ranked for four-straight weeks.

LAST TIME OUT
• Brittney Sykes scored seven of her team-high 15 points in the final 2:27 to lead Syracuse to a 58-47 win at Pittsburgh (9-10, 1-4 ACC) on Sunday at the Petersen Events Center. Brianna Butler added 14 points, while Briana Day and Taylor Ford had double-doubles as the Orange picked up its first ACC road victory.
• In a game dominated by the defenses, Syracuse benefited from a 22-12 scoring advantage in the paint as it out-rebounded the Panthers, 47-39. SU also enjoyed a 15-5 edge in fast-break points.
• Day recorded her third double-double of the season with a career-high tying 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Ford had the first of her career with 10 points and a career-best 12 boards.
• Syracuse shot 30.9 percent overall, while holding Pitt to 22.6 percent from the field. In a game that saw 44 fouls, the Orange was 20-of-28 at the free throw line, while the Panthers were 18-of-24.

MASTER THIEVES
• With an aggressive fullcourt press and trapping defense, the Orange boasts the best turnover margin in the ACC (22nd nationally) at +5.2 and has produced an average of 22.6 points per game this season off its opponents' 19.8 turnovers per game.
• In its three wins at the Paradise Jam, the Orange forced at least 20 turnovers by its opponents each game.
• Syracuse scored 53 points off 31 turnovers in its 113-42 win vs. Maryland Eastern Shore. SU totaled 18 steals by nine different players.
• SU's 2012-13 opponents averaged 20.3 turnovers per game, resulting in a +3.94 turnover margin. The Orange scored 20.5 points per game off turnovers.

TAKING CARE OF THE BALL
• Also aiding the ACC-best turnover margin is the fact that Syracuse is tied for the second-fewest turnovers in the ACC at 14.6 per game.
• SU surrenders just 14.1 ppg off its turnovers, resulting in a +8.5 margin in points per game off turnovers.
• Brianna Butler boasts the best assist-to-turnover ratio on the team, 39-to-17.

UP NEXT
• The Orange remains home to host Virginia on Sunday in a 2 p.m. tip-off at the Dome. The game will be televised on the ACC Regional Sports Network. In New York State, the game will air on MSG+.

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