Orange Take Down Cal in Double OT Thriller

Wednesday, February 11

Syracuse, NY

7:00 PM

Syracuse University

14-11,5-7ACC

107

100

California

17-8,5-7ACC

OT 1

OT 2

California

100

Syracuse

107

2/11/2026 10:23:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Senior Nate Kingz had 27 points and classmate William Kyle III tallied 15 points and a career-high 16 rebounds to lead Syracuse (14-11, 5-7 ACC) past California (17-8, 5-7 ACC), 107-100 in double overtime thriller at the JMA Wireless Dome on Wednesday evening.

Senior J.J. Starling matched his season-high with 21 points and six different Syracuse players reached double figures in the victory.

California was paced by Dai Dai Ames with 23 points while John Camden added 21.

How the Game Was Decided
Forty minutes and one overtime wasn't enough, as the teams headed to a second overtime tied at 91.

Kyle III opened the second extra period with a free throw before Donnie Freeman's jumper gave Syracuse a 94-91 lead with under four minutes remaining. Mlos Ilic answered with a jumper, but Freeman converted another layup and Kingz knocked down a corner 3-pointer to push the lead to 99-93 with under two minutes left.

Camden brought California back within striking distance, hitting two free throws and a 3-pointer to cut it to 102-98 with 30 seconds remaining. Naithan George hit two free throws to extend the lead to 104-98, but California's Chris Bell drew a foul on a 3-point attempt and made two of three to pull the Bears within 104-100 with 18 seconds left.

Freeman iced the game at the line with two free throws to push the lead to 106-100. Bell's final 3-point attempt missed and Starling added one more free throw as Syracuse pulled away with a 107-100 victory.

Trading Early 3-pointers
Over the first four minutes, the teams combined for 10 shots with nine coming from beyond the arc. Syracuse started 2-of-4 (.500) from 3-point range as Starling and Kingz each connected.

California answered and made 2-of-5 (.400) of their attempts from deep with Camden and Justin Pippen connecting. Pippen added two free throws to give the Golden Bears an 8-6 lead at the first media timeout.

Freeman knocked down a 3-pointer out of the media break, but California shifted inside for three straight field goals to build a 14-9 advantage at the 14:11 mark.

Tit-for-Tat First Half
The Orange quickly erased the five-point deficit as senior William Kyle III converted a pair of baskets, including an alley-oop slam. Kingz put Syracuse ahead with two free throws, and a layup stretched the lead to 17-14 before Chris Bell's 3-pointer tied things at 17-17 with 11:34 left in the half.

The teams traded baskets over the next few minutes with neither establishing a commanding lead until California broke through with a 10-2 run over 2:34, shooting 4-of-5 (.800) with two 3-pointers to pull ahead 31-25.

Syracuse answered with a 10-4 run to close the half, led by Kingz's six points, and sending the teams into the break tied at 35-35.

Seven Orange players scored in the opening 20 minutes, with Kingz pacing the team with 11 points. Syracuse kept the Golden Bears from getting to the rim, with six different players recording a block in the first half, tallying seven total.

Status Quo Second Half
California pulled ahead out of the break, 47-44, but Syracuse responded with an 8-0 run over 1:18. Freshman Sadiq White Jr. ignited the stretch with an alley-oop, followed by a George jumper, Kyle III dunk and Starling layup to give the Orange a 52-47 edge at the 13:27 mark, their largest lead of the game to that point.

Syracuse owned a 65-64 at the eight-minute media timeout. Through the first 13 minutes of the second half, Syracuse shot 12-of-19 (.632) from the field while California connected at an 11-of-22 (.500) clip.

Crunch Time
California managed to push in front, 74-71, on a layup by Ames with 2:38 remaining.

With 2:12 left, Kingz delivered an acrobatic layup to put the Orange back ahead 75-74. He missed the ensuing free throw to keep the lead at one.

Ilic hit two free throws to put California back ahead 76-75 before George answered with a 3-pointer that give Syracuse a 78-76 lead with 57 seconds left. Out of a timeout, California's Ames converted a layup to tie the game at 78.

Syracuse called timeout but turned the ball over with 22 seconds remaining, giving the Bears the final possession of regulation. The Orange defense forced Ames into a contested fadeaway that missed, sending the game to overtime.

Overtime Part One
Chris Bell's 3-pointer gave California an 85-83 lead with 2:09 left in the extra period. Kingz answered with a free throw, but Ames converted a layup to push the Bears' lead to 87-84.

George answered with an and-one layup at 1:09 before Starling's drive to the rim put Syracuse ahead 89-87 with 39 seconds left. Ames turned it over and the Golden Bears fouled George, who hit one of two free throws for a 90-87 lead with 18 seconds left.

Ames quickly scored, and California fouled Kingz, who made one of two. Ames' jumper fell short, but Ilic grabbed the offensive rebound and tipped it in just prior to the horn to force a second overtime.

Notable Numbers

The game was temporarily delayed by a power outage, causing lights in the arena to go out. After the referees spoke with both coaches, the teams agreed to play on.
Rounding out the double-digit scorers for Syracuse were Freeman (16), George (14) and freshman Sadiq White Jr. (10).
Starling logged 44:30 of playing time for the Orange.
Syracuse made 38-of-71 (.535) from the field in the contest.
The Orange outrebounded the Bears, 43-41.
Eight different players combined for nine blocks for Syracuse, the most to contribute rejections in a game dating back to at least the 1999-2000 season.
107 points is Syracuse's most points scored in a game since November 30, 2021 when the Orange scored 112 against Indiana in double overtime.
This was the Orange's first overtime win since February 8th, 2025, when Syracuse took down Boston College, 95-86 in triple overtime.
Syracuse dominated the paint, outscoring California, 62-46.
The game featured 28 lead changes and 14 ties.
Syracuse outscored California, 22-9 on the fast break.

Up Next
The Orange stay home this weekend with SMU set to visit the JMA Wireless Dome on Saturday. The matchup with the Mustangs is a 2 p.m. tip off and will air on The CW.

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