Orange, Fighting Irish Meet Saturday For Rematch

Game Details: Saturday, Jan. 18, Syracuse, N.Y., 4 p.m.
TV: ACC Network
Live Coverage: Stats
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Facebook: Syracuse Orange
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Notre Dame Links: Notes | News | Roster | Schedule

Syracuse (8-9, 2-4 ACC) and Notre Dame (8-9, 2-4 ACC) will square off for the second time this season Saturday at the JMA Wireless Dome. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m. and the game will air live on ACC Network.

Setting The Stage
Syracuse had its two-game ACC winning streak snapped Tuesday night by Louisville, who knocked off the Orange at the Dome, 85-61. Eddie Lampkin Jr. recorded his third consecutive double-double with 11 points and 10 boards while Chris Bell led the Orange in scoring with 18 bench points.

The Fighting Irish also enter Saturday with a 2-4 mark in conference play. They snapped a four-game ACC losing skid Monday with a 78-60 home triumph over Boston College. Tae Davis led Notre Dame with 26 points against the Eagles with Markus Burton reaching 20. The Irish went 23-of-27 at the free throw line and shot 47-percent from the field.

Micah Shrewsberry is in his second season as Notre Dame's head coach. He guided the Fighting Irish to a 13-20 record in 2023-24.

The Syracuse-Notre Dame Series
The Orange hold a 34-24 advantage in the all-time series against Notre Dame. Syracuse is 14-8 against the Fighting Irish at the Dome, which includes three straight home victories in the series.

Notre Dame's win over Syracuse in December snapped a three-game winning streak for the Orange over the Fighting Irish.

The First Act
Notre Dame topped the Orange in South Bend on Dec. 7, 69-64. Both teams were without their leading scorers on the season, as J.J. Starling and Burton both missed the contest due to injury.

Donnie Freeman and Jyare Davis both scored 20 points to lead the Orange, with Freeman adding 11 rebounds for a double-double. However, Syracuse failed to make a 3-pointer (0-9) for the first time since Nov. 28, 2014.

Jaquan Carlos dished out seven assists while contributing eight points. The Orange shot 47-percent from the field and outscored the Fighting Irish 40-28 in the paint.

Braeden Shrewsberry paced Notre Dame with a game-high 25 points, with Davis and J.R. Konieczny each pitching in 15 points of their own. Shrewsberry made six of Notre Dame's eight triples on the day.

Welcome Back, J.J.
Starling has picked up where he left off since returning from his injury, as Syracuse's leading scorer has recorded double figures in three of his four appearances since rejoining the lineup. He has hit double-digit points in nine of his 10 outings on the season.

In Syracuse's win at Boston College last weekend, Starling paced the Orange with 26 points, 20 of which came after intermission. Starling went 12-of-22 from the field for the game and 9-of-14 in the second half. Against Georgia Tech last week, Starling scored 21 points on an efficient 9-of-16 effort from the field.

Starling is averaging 18.2 points per outing on the campaign. His 38 points from the Orange's double-overtime victory against Youngstown State were the second most by an ACC player in a game this season.

Three In A Row
Lampkin Jr. has registered a double-double in three consecutive contests, bringing his total on the season to six. It is his longest double-double streak on the campaign.

Against Louisville, Lampkin Jr. turned in 11 points and 10 boards. He matched his season high with 13 rebounds at Boston College and added 10 points in that encounter. The streak began in the victory over Georgia Tech, which saw Lampkin Jr. post 10 points and 12 boards.

The center has amassed double-digit rebounds in six of the last seven games and is averaging 3.7 offensive boards per contest in that stretch.

Ring The Bell
Bell notched a team-high 18 points off the bench Tuesday against Louisville, spurring a 36-point effort from the Orange's reserves. It was his second time with 18 points in the last four games, as he also hit that tally in his first game coming off the bench at Florida State.

In the Louisville game, Bell went 4-of-7 on 3-pointers. His 20 made shots from beyond-the-arc lead the Orange on the season. The junior is averaging 11.8 points over the last four contests in a reserve role.

Davis Doing It All
Davis made his sixth start of the season against Louisville in place of the injured Freeman. He delivered another stellar all-around performance with 10 points and eight rebounds.

He has nine games this season with at least five points and five rebounds, which he has accomplished in five of the Orange's six ACC contests. The forward is third on the team for season in rebounding with 5.6 per game and is shooting 54-percent from the field while averaging 8.7 points.

Crashing The Glass
As a team, Syracuse grabs 38.5 rebounds per contest, tied for the third most in the ACC. The Orange boast a plus-3.8 margin on the season and have recorded double-digit offensive boards 10 times on the campaign.

Three different Syracuse players have pulled down 10 or more rebounds in a game this season – Lampkin Jr. (eight times), Freeman (seven times) and Davis (one time). Lampkin has double-digit boards in six of the last seven outings, while Freeman has hit double figures in two of his last three appearances.

Scouting Notre Dame
Burton is pacing the Fighting Irish with 19.0 points per contest, with Davis close behind at 16.7. Shrewsberry (14.9) and Matt Allocco (10.1) also average in double figures. Shrewsberry's 48 3-pointers are the most makes on the team.

Kebba Njie is Notre Dame's top rebounder, grabbing 6.1 boards per outing. Allocco leads the team with 54 assists and has the best assist/turnover ratio (3.9) in the conference.

As a team, the Fighting Irish boast the fifth best field goal percentage in the ACC (.469) while shooting at a 36.8-percent clip from beyond the arc, the fourth best in the conference.

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.

Freeman, who has missed the three two games due to injury, has registered six double-doubles on the campaign and is averaging 15.3 points over his last nine appearances. He has scored 15 or more in six games over that stretch.

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 9.9 points and 8.1 rebounds per contest with six double-doubles.

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).

Orange, Fighting Irish Meet Saturday For Rematch

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Players Mentioned

Chris Bell

Jaquan Carlos

Donnie Freeman

Eddie Lampkin Jr.

J.J. Starling

Syracuse University Athletics