Orange Set For Wednesday Meeting With Big Red

Game Details: Wednesday, Nov. 27, Syracuse, N.Y., 7 p.m.
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Syracuse (3-2) returns to the JMA Wireless Dome on Wednesday night to face in-state foe Cornell (4-2).

Setting The Stage
The Orange are coming off an 0-2 showing at last week's UKG Legends Classic in Brooklyn. Syracuse was defeated by Texas in the semifinals, 70-66, before falling to Texas Tech in the third-place game, 79-74. J.J. Starling (27) and Chris Bell (22) both surpassed 20 points in the loss to the Red Raiders.

Cornell enters Wednesday night with a 4-2 record this season after picking up an 84-68 victory at Iona on Monday. The Big Red is 1-1 in true road games on the campaign. Cornell was tabbed to finish fourth in the Ivy League preseason poll and is led by first-year head coach Jon Jaques, a 2010 graduate of Cornell who has been on the Big Red's staff since 2013.

The Syracuse-Cornell Series
Wednesday night will be the 129^th installment of the Syracuse-Cornell series, which the Orange lead, 97-31. Syracuse has won 43 straight matchups against the Big Red and is 65-13 in home games against Cornell.

The teams met last season on Dec. 5, 2023, with the Orange coming away with an 81-70 victory at the JMA Wireless Dome. Judah Mintz paced Syracuse with 28 points in the win.

Starling Starring
Starling is Syracuse's top scorer this season and is tied for No. 2 in the ACC in points per game, as the guard is averaging 21.4 per contest. He led the Orange in scoring in both games at the Legends Classic, with 16 against Texas and 27 against Texas Tech.

The junior's 38 points against Youngstown State on Nov. 16 were the most an ACC player has scored in a game this season and the most by a Syracuse player since Cole Swider also had 38 at North Carolina on Feb. 22, 2022. Starling played a career-high 49 minutes and scored 31 of his 38 points in the second half and overtime against Youngstown State.

Lampkin Jr. Settling In
Five games into his Syracuse career, Eddie Lampkin Jr. has already made a consistent impact for the Orange. He has scored in double figures in four of Syracuse's five games this season and is averaging 12.6 points per contest, the second most on the team.

The center is also tied for the team lead in assists this season with 19 and has tallied a pair of double-doubles against Colgate and Youngstown State. His 8.2 rebounds per contest are the second most on the team behind Donnie Freeman (8.6).

Ring The Bell
Bell is coming off a strong shooting performance against Texas Tech, as the junior recorded three triples, his most in a game this season. He also went 11-of-11 from the free throw line, his most makes in a game during his Syracuse career.

On the season, Bell is averaging 15.2 points per contest, which trails just Starling. He is 23-of-27 on free throws through five games, which is the most makes and best percentage (.852) on the team.

Double-Doubles
Three different Syracuse players have recorded double-doubles in the team's first five games. Freeman and Lampkin Jr. lead the way with two apiece, with Freeman's most recent one coming against Youngstown State. Jyare Davis also turned in a double-double in the season opener against Le Moyne with his 22 points and 12 rebounds, both of which led the Orange against the Dolphins.

Scouting Cornell
Jake Flegen is Cornell's top scorer this season with 15.5 points per contest. The sophomore guard has scored at least 15 points in five of the Big Red's first six games. AK Okereke (11.5) ad Cooper Noard (10.8) also average double figures.

Guy Ragland Jr. is the Big Red's leading rebounder, as the senior forward averages 7.8 boards per outing. He has also delivered a pair of double-doubles this season. Okereke's 27 assists are pacing Cornell.

Freeman, Lampkin Jr. Make Preseason Watch Lists
Freeman is one of 20 players to make the preseason watch list for the 2025 Karl Malone Award, which recognizes the top power forwards in Division I men's basketball. Freeman, a McDonald's All-American and the second-highest Syracuse recruit in program history, is one of two freshmen to make this year's Malone Award watch list.

Lampkin Jr. is one of 20 preseason watch-list candidates for the 2025 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, which goes to the top center in men's college basketball. Lampkin Jr. is in his first year with the Orange and is averaging 14.8 points and 8.3 rebounds per contest.

The list for both awards will be narrowed to 10 in late January, and then to just five in late February. In March, the five finalists for both awards will be presented to Abdul-Jabbar, Malone and the Hall of Fame's selection committee where winners will be selected.

Orange fans are encouraged to participate in three rounds of Fan Voting, presented by Dell Technologies, on hoophallawards.com.

Tickets
Syracuse men's basketball tickets are available online (cuse.com/tickets), by phone (1-888-DOMETIX) and at the Dome Box Office (Gate B).

For complete coverage of Syracuse men's basketball, follow the team on X (@Cuse_MBB) and Instagram (@cuse_mbb).

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Players Mentioned

Chris Bell

Donnie Freeman

Eddie Lampkin Jr.

Judah Mintz

J.J. Starling

Syracuse University Athletics