Syracuse basketball will aim for a regular-season sweep of Notre Dame when these two Atlantic Coast Conference teams suit up on Saturday night at the JMA Wireless Dome.
In early December, the Orange went on the road and snuck by the Fighting Irish, 62-61. Most recently, this past Wednesday evening in Central New York, Syracuse basketball picked up perhaps its best win to date in the 2022-23 campaign, as the Orange (11-6, 4-2 in the ACC) defeated Virginia Tech, 82-72.
Over its last 10 encounters, the ‘Cuse is 8-2. For Notre Dame (9-8, 1-5), the Fighting Irish has struggled so far in ACC competition, although in its most recent outing, Notre Dame won at home versus Georgia Tech, 73-72 in overtime.
Prior to getting past the Yellow Jackets earlier this week, the Fighting Irish had lost three contests in a row. If Syracuse basketball wants to enter the conversation for a possible invite to this spring’s Big Dance, the ‘Cuse can ill-afford to fall on the Hill to a Notre Dame group that, candidly, isn’t all that good.
Syracuse basketball vs. Notre Dame odds
When I published this column, actionnetwork.com had installed the Orange as a 6.5-point betting favorite over the Fighting Irish, with the over/under set at 140.5 points.
Syracuse basketball vs. Notre Dame prediction
Per SU Athletics, the Orange is 32-22 in its all-time series with the Fighting Irish. At the time of this writing, Syracuse basketball checked in at No. 118 in the NCAA’s NET rankings, whereas Notre Dame resided at No. 166.
To put it bluntly, defeating the Fighting Irish won’t do much for the Orange’s resume, however, losing at home to Notre Dame would prove a dreadful event for the ‘Cuse. So far in 2022-23, Syracuse basketball is 8-3 on its own turf, while the Fighting Irish is winless on the road at 0-3.
Over on the ESPN Web site, the Orange holds a lot of statistical advantages heading into its match-up with Notre Dame, but the two things that stand out to me are the turnover department and 3-point shooting.
In recent games, Syracuse basketball has committed a lot of miscues, but it also does an excellent job of forcing its foes into turnovers. The Fighting Irish takes care of the ball well, only committing 9.5 turnovers per game.
Also, when the ‘Cuse knocked off Virginia Tech earlier this week, the Hokies were dreadful from downtown. Notre Dame, I want to point out, is a solid group from beyond the arc, hitting on 37.7 percent of its attempts from long range.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Central New York native J.J. Starling, a former long-time Syracuse basketball recruit who is a freshman guard for the Fighting Irish. He’s having a pretty good freshman stint for Notre Dame, averaging 12.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists per meeting while hitting on 43.2 percent from the field and 34.9 percent from 3-point land.
I think that Syracuse basketball is the better unit in this ACC collision, but the Orange can’t look past the Fighting Irish. That being said, I’ll project a ‘Cuse victory over Notre Dame this coming Saturday night.
Injuries, how to watch, live stream, next game
On the injury front, Syracuse basketball head coach Jim Boeheim says that, unfortunately, freshman big man Peter Carey is out for the rest of the 2022-23 season and will take a medical redshirt, according to an article from Syracuse.com’s Mike Waters.
Per Waters’ story, the 6-foot-11 power forward/center “recently underwent a surgical procedure on his right knee,” according to Boeheim. Wishing Carey a speedy recovery, and we’ll continue to monitor the injury front for the ‘Cuse in the current stanza.
The Orange and Notre Dame will commence their upcoming game on Saturday, Jan. 14, at the Dome, with the tip-off scheduled for 7 pm. The ACC Network will televise this league affair.
For Syracuse basketball and Fighting Irish fans who want to stream this game, you can check it out on fuboTV.
After the ‘Cuse hosts Notre Dame, the Orange will head on down to the Sunshine State. On Monday, Jan. 16, Syracuse basketball will go toe to toe with Miami, which is one of the best squads in the ACC to date and is presently ranked No. 16 in the latest Associated Press top-25 poll.
The tip-off of this conference clash is scheduled for 7 pm from the Watsco Center in Coral Gables, Fla., with television coverage on the ACC Network.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.