Orange Earn Road Victory Over Georgia Tech

Tuesday, January 6

Atlanta, GA

7:00 PM

Syracuse University

10-5,1-1ACC

Georgia Tech

10-6,1-2ACC

Syracuse

Georgia Tech

1/6/2026 9:37:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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Donnie Freeman scored a career-high 27 points and added a team-best nine rebounds to lift Syracuse (10-5, 1-1 ACC) past Georgia Tech (10-6, 1-2 ACC), 82-72, at McCamish Pavilion in Atlanta for its first ACC win of the season.

Former Yellow Jacket junior Naithan George made his return to Atlanta, posting 17 points and a team-high five assists in the victory. Freshman Kiyan Anthony joined George and Freeman in double digit scoring with 11.

Baye Ndongo led the Yellow Jackets with 20 points, including 14 in the second half. He was also the team's leading rebounder with nine.

How the Game Was Decided
A late surge from the Yellow Jackets closed the Syracuse lead to 72-67 with 3:26 showing on the clock.

Needing an answer, Freeman provided one. The sophomore was fouled on a shot attempt and sank the free throw, then threw down a two-handed slam on the ensuing possession to push the lead back to eight at 75-67.

The Yellow Jackets responded when Akai Fleming drilled a corner three to cut it to a two-possession game at 76-70. Georgia Tech forced a turnover on the ensuing Syracuse possession, giving them another chance to chip away with 38 seconds to go. They fed Ndongo down low, but senior William Kyle III swatted away the layup attempt to shut the door on the comeback bid.

George closed it out at the line, knocking down four free throws in the final 30 seconds, before Freeman sealed the victory with two more from the charity stripe with eight seconds remaining.

3-Pointers Ignite Syracuse Offense Early
The Orange got on the board first, with Starling finding Kyle III for an alley-oop slam on the opening possession. The Yellow Jackets proceeded to go on a 6-0 run while the Orange offense found its footing.

George connected on his first look from 3-point range to kick off a string of threes for the Orange. On the ensuing possession, Freeman delivered a 3-pointer before Kingz added a triple moments later. The flurry of threes gave Syracuse an 11-8 advantage with just over 15 minutes left in the first half.

The barrage of 3-pointers didn't end there, with Anthony hitting the Orange's fourth consecutive look from deep minutes later. The Yellow Jackets continued to answer to stay within reach.

Orange Close First Half Strong
With just under 11 minutes left in the first half, the two squads found themselves knotted up at 16-16. The Orange went on to embark on a 14-5 surge over a four-and-a-half minute stretch to seize control.

Starling got the run started with two free throws before throwing down a one-handed slam to spark the offense. On the ensuing possession, Anthony converted a driving layup through a foul and hit a free throw for a three-point play.

Freshman Sadiq White Jr. got in on the action moments later when Starling found him for a high-flying alley-oop to extend the lead to 25-19. Kingz added a driving layup before Anthony punctuated the run with a step back 3-pointer to give the Orange a 30-21 edge at the 6:10 mark.

Over the final five minutes of the first half, Syracuse outscored Georgia Tech 14-6 to give them a 44-30 advantage heading into the break. 44 points was the most points in a first half this season for the Orange. George led the Orange over that duration, scoring six points.

Defensively, Syracuse held the Yellow Jackets to just 11-of-31 (.355) from the field and 1-of-8 (.125) from beyond the arc while tallying six blocks, three from Freeman.

Freeman Kickstarts Second Half
The Orange wasted no time extending their lead in the second half, opening on a 12-6 run over the first five minutes to build a 56-36 cushion. Freeman had 11 of those points, shooting 4-of-4 (1.000) from the field including drilling a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws to spearhead the quick start coming out of the locker room.

The Yellow Jackets began to find a bit of a rhythm offensively, getting a couple of shots to fall, but the Orange continued to have an answer. Kyle III and Souare added a couple of makes down low while Betsey hit a 3-pointer to keep the Orange comfortably out in front with a 65-47 lead at the 11:29 mark.

The Yellow Jackets had a burst over the next eight minutes, going on a 20-7 run to cut the Syracuse lead to single digits at 72-67 before the Orange went on to close the game out at the free throw line.

Notable Numbers

Nine different players found the scoring column in the victory.
Anthony scored 11 points in the first half on 4-of-8 (.500) shooting, marking his eighth game scoring in double digits this season and first of ACC play.
Freeman posted a new career-high in blocks in the first half alone, posting three. He has now recorded at least one block in all six appearances this season.
Three offensive rebounds ties a career-high for Freeman.
Kyle III extended his block streak to 15 games, having at least one in every game this season.
George was a perfect 10-of-10 from the free throw line.
Kingz has now hit a 3-pointer in four consecutive games.
The Orange tallied 19 second chance points.

Up Next
The Orange continue its ACC schedule on Saturday, January 10 when they clash with Pittsburgh on the road. The contest will take place at the Petersen Events Center and is scheduled for a 2:00 p.m. tip off.

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

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