Orange, Eagles Meet Tuesday

Game Details: Tuesday, March 3, Chestnut Hill, Mass., 7 p.m.
Television: ESPN2 | Watch ESPN
Live Coverage: Stats
Twitter: @cuse | @Cuse_MBB
Syracuse Links: Notes | News | Roster | Schedule
Boston College Links: Notes | News | Roster | Schedule

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. -- Syracuse hits the road for its final two-regular season games, starting in Chestnut Hill on Tuesday, March 3 against Boston College. Tipoff at the Conte Forum is slated for 7 p.m.

The game will be televised nationally on ESPN2 and the Watch ESPN app. Fans can also listen to all the action on the Syracuse Sports Network from Learfield IMG College, including TK99 and ESPN Syracuse locally.

ORANGE UPDATE
Sophomore Buddy Boeheim had 22 points and junior Bourama Sidibe posted 17 points and 15 rebounds, but it was not enough as North Carolina bested Syracuse, 92-79, Saturday in the Orange's final game in the Carrier Dome this season.

Boeheim paced the Orange with his 10th 20+ point game of the season. Sidibe recorded his second consecutive double-double, finishing with season-highs in both points (17) and rebounds (15). Sidibe's stupendous Saturday built on a prolific stretch of play as of late. Over the past three games, the 6-10 junior has averaged a double-double, with 12.0 points and 11.7 rebounds per game over that span. Redshirt junior Elijah Hughes tallied 19 points while going a perfect 7-for-7 from the charity stripe.

Hughes' performance on Saturday was enough to maintain his reign atop the ACC's scoring leaders, averaging 18.8 points per game, nearly one point more than the conference's second-leading scorer, Louisville's Jordan Nwora (17.9 ppg.). The Beacon, New York native also ranks among the 10-best in the conference in field goal percentage (.421), 3-point field goals per game (2.4) and assists per game (3.7).

Boeheim has been the conference's most prolific 3-point shooter throughout the 2019-20 campaign. The sophomore guard owns ACC-highs in 3-point field goal percentage (.380), 3-point field goals per game (3.1) and 3-point field goals made (90). The Fayetteville, New York-native leads the latter category by 20, ahead of Hughes, Nwora and Notre Dame's T.J. Gibbs, who each have 70 made triples.

Boeheim 25-point outburst also raised his scoring average to 15.2 points per game, tying him with Miami's Chris Lykes for ninth in the ACC.
The pair of Hughes and Boeheim average the most combined points per game (34.0), the most combined 3-point field goals per game (5.5) and the most combined minutes per game (72.6) of any two ACC teammates.

Joseph Girard III (13.0 ppg.) and Marek Dolezaj (10.2 ppg.) join Hughes and Boeheim as Orange scorers averaging 10+ points per game. In addition to Girard III's ACC-best .899 free throw percentage, he also plays an efficient brand of basketball, owning the ninth-best assist/turnover ratio in the conference (1.7)

In addition to his scoring prowess, Dolezaj sits in the ACC's top 20 for assists (82), blocks (26) and offensive rebounds (70). The 6-10 Slovakian has had seven games during the 2019-20 campaign where he has scored in double figures while also dishing out three-or-more assists.

The Orange have hit from beyond the arc at a prolific rate this season. In addition to owning three players that crack the conference's top 10 for 3-point field goals made per game (Hughes, Boeheim, Girard III), Syracuse ties with Louisville for the third-most triples made in the conference. Additionally, the 'Cuse ranks amongst the conference's top 10 in blocked shots per game (4.52), steals per game (7.24) and offensive rebounds per game (10.2).

SCOUTING THE EAGLES
Boston College rounds out a three-game homestand against Syracuse after dropping the first two games to Clemson (82-64) and Notre Dame (62-61). The losses push the Eagles' record on the season to 13-16 with a 7-11 mark in conference play. Against ACC foes that enter the Conte Forum, BC is 4-5, having lost four of its last five conference home games.

The Eagles bring three players averaging double-figure scoring to Tuesday's contest – Jay Heath (12.9 ppg.), Derryk Thornton (12.9 ppg.) and Nik Popovic (10.5 ppg.).

On the season, Heath leads Boston College in field goals made (133) and 3-point field goals made (55), while also owning a team-best .374 3-point field goal percentage (min. 10 attempts). In addition to his offensive abilities, Heath has shown a penchant for being able to strip his opponents of the ball, ranking amongst the ACC's top-15 in steals per game (1.4).

Thornton has made himself an asset on the offensive end of the court with his distributing abilities, dishing out a team-high 3.5 assists per game. The graduate guard also ranks amongst the 20 best in the conference in assist/turnover ratio (1.0).

Popovic has posted percentages that place amongst the best on Boston College. His field goal percentage (.435) and 3-point field goal percentage (.374) are team-highs for players averaging 10+ minutes per game.

In addition to the Eagles' double-digit scorers, Steffon Mitchell brings a diverse skillset to Chestnut Hill. He paces the conference in steals per game (2.3), while grabbing the fifth-most boards per game (8.4) and owning the sixth-best assist/turnover ratio (2.0) in the ACC.

Boston College has struggled on the offensive end this season, averaging the second-fewest points per game in the conference (64.7), good for 318th in the nation. The Eagles also own the ACC's second-lowest field goal percentage (.406), a mark that ranks 324th nationally.

After facing the ACC's best rebounding team in North Carolina, the Orange go up against the ACC's worst in Boston College. The Eagles grab 32.8 boards per contest, 1.2 rebounds fewer than the next lowest team (Clemson, 34.0).

Head coach Jim Christian is in his sixth season as the Eagles' head coach. Christian owns a 75-116 record during his time in Chestnut Hill. In 11 previous matchups with Christian at the helm, the Eagles have only been able to best the Orange twice, dropping nine of 11 matchups to Syracuse.

SERIES HISTORY
Tuesday's game will be the 77th all-time meeting between Syracuse and Boston College. The Orange have won the past three contests against the Eagles, including a 76-50 victory at the Carrier Dome this season on January 15. The Orange were powered to victory behind 22 points from Boeheim and a double-double from Dolezaj (10 points, 11 rebounds).

UP NEXT
The Orange wrap up the regular season with a trip to Coral Gables for a matchup against Miami on Saturday, March 7. The game will be televised on ACC Network with tipoff scheduled for 4 p.m. Fans can also listen to all the action on the Syracuse Sports Network from Learfield IMG College, including TK99 and ESPN Syracuse locally.

For complete coverage of Syracuse men's basketball, follow us on Twitter (@Cuse_MBB), Instagram (cuse_mbb) and like us on Facebook (SyracuseOrange).

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Players Mentioned

Buddy Boeheim

Marek Dolezaj

Joseph Girard III

Elijah Hughes

Bourama Sidibe

Syracuse University Athletics