Orange Soar Past Hawks at Home

Tuesday, November 18

Syracuse, N.Y.

9:00 PM

Syracuse University

4-0,0-0ACC

Monmouth

1-3,0-0CAA

Monmouth

Syracuse

11/18/2025 11:48:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Highlights Adrian Autry Press Conference Photo Gallery

Behind a balanced offensive attack, the Syracuse Orange (4-0) topped the Monmouth Hawks (1-3), 78-73, at the JMA Wireless Dome on Tuesday night, giving Syracuse its first 4-0 start to a season since the 2017-18 campaign.

The Orange were paced by sophomore Donnie Freeman, who notched 18 points. Freeman made the most of his opportunities from the free throw line, shooting 12-of-14 (.857) from the charity stripe, while adding seven boards. Redshirt senior Nate Kingz scored a season-high 15 points in the victory, shooting 6-of-12 (.500) from the field, including 3-of-7 (.429) on 3-point tries.

Monmouth's Justin Ray was efficient for the Hawks, tallying a game-high 25 points on 6-of-11 (.545) shooting against the Orange.

How the Game Was Decided
After playing in a first half that featured six ties and 10 lead changes, Syracuse came out of the break looking to pull away from the Hawks. Over a four-minute stretch in the early stages of the second half, the Orange went on an 11-2 run. The Hawks shot 1-of-8 (.125) over the stretch while Syracuse was 4-of-4 (1.000) from the field, including 2-of-2 (1.000) from beyond the arc.

Kingz powered the run, scoring seven points with a pair of layups and a three-point make. Freshman Kiyan Anthony completed the stretch with a three-point make of his own before hitting a free throw on a separate play. The offensive spurt gave Syracuse a 50-41 lead.

The Hawks rallied to make it a one-possession game but the Orange never relinquished the lead.

Spreading the Wealth
The Orange once again spread out the ball on offense, seeing seven different players make multiple field goals with four going into double figures. Joining Kingz and Freeman in double digits were junior Naithan George and senior J.J. Starling, scoring 12 and 11, respectively. After missing the past two games with an injury, Starling made his return shooting 4-of-6 (.667) from the field and made his only attempt from three-point range.

As a collective, the Orange were 26-of-52 (.500) from the field, including a 7-of-17 (.412) clip from three.

Six different players also recorded assists in the win. George was just one assist shy of a double-double, recording a season-high nine in the win.

Winning the Battle Down Low
The Orange continued to make opponents pay down low, outscoring the Hawks in the paint, 38-22. Senior William Kyle III was a force once again, grabbing seven boards and recording three blocks..

Notable Numbers:

Freeman's 12 free throws marked a new career-high, topping his previous high of eight makes in last year's game against Notre Dame.
The Orange drew 13 fouls in the opening half alone.
George opened the day shooting 3-of-3 (1.000) from the field, including 2-of-2 from beyond the arc, to give him eight points in the first 12 minutes. He added two assists over the stretch.
Syracuse forced nine turnovers in the first half.
The Orange scored nine fast-break points in the opening half while holding Monmouth to zero.
The first half featured six ties and 10 lead changes.
Four of the five starters for Syracuse went into double digits.
The Syracuse bench contributed 15 points in the win.
Bryce Zephir and Freeman led the team in plus-minus, both at plus-seven.

Up Next
The Orange will now set their sights on Las Vegas, Nevada as they get set to take part in the Players Era Championship. They'll take on Houston on Monday, November 24^th and Kansas on Tuesday, November 25^th. The Orange will play a third game in the event against an opponent to be determined based on results from the opening two days.

Tickets
Season and individual tickets are available at cuse.com/feature/basketball-tickets

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