Syracuse basketball has its second straight Atlantic Coast Conference road encounter on Saturday afternoon, as the Orange will invade "The Pete" to play long-time foe Pittsburgh.
The 'Cuse notched its first ACC triumph of the 2025-26 season this past Tuesday night. The Orange built up a 20-point lead over Georgia Tech in Atlanta, the Yellow Jackets stormed back in the latter part of the second half, but Syracuse basketball would ultimately prevail, 82-72.
Now the 'Cuse will square off against the Panthers, a team that is among the ACC's worst groups to date in 2025-26. The Panthers have won two consecutive games against Syracuse basketball, although the Orange leads the all-time series, 75-52, according to SU Athletics.
How to watch Syracuse basketball at Pittsburgh on Saturday.
The Orange (10-5 overall, 1-1 in the ACC) and the Panthers (7-8 overall, 0-2 in the ACC) are scheduled to tip off at 2:00 pm EST on Saturday, Jan. 10, at the Petersen Events Center, with television coverage on the ACC Network.
Pittsburgh has beaten Youngstown State, Longwood, Eastern Michigan, Bucknell, Ohio State, Binghamton and Penn State. The Panthers have fallen to West Virginia, UCF, Quinnipiac, Texas A&M, Hofstra, Villanova, Miami and Clemson.
At the time of this writing, Pittsburgh's NET ranking was No. 112 overall, as compared to No. 84 for the 'Cuse. That makes this a quadrant-two game for Syracuse basketball, which is 1-0 in true road games this season, while the Panthers are 6-4 at home.
Over at KenPom, Pittsburgh is No. 93 overall. The Orange is No. 75 nationally and also in the top 50 in adjusted defensive efficiency. These two teams are relatively similar in a lot of statistical categories.
The Panthers score 73.3 points per game and allow 68.7 points. They average 35.0 rebounds, 13.0 assists, 6.8 steals, 3.3 blocks and 11.2 turnovers per contest while making 45.5 percent from the field, 68.0 percent from the free-throw line and 35.9 percent from beyond the arc.
Conversely, Syracuse basketball scores 74.2 points per affair and gives up 65.3 points. The 'Cuse averages 36.5 rebounds, 12.8 assists, 6.6 steals, 7.1 blocks and 11.3 turnovers per game while connecting on 46.1 pecent from the field, 61.9 percent from the charity stripe and 31.3 percent from downtown.
Syracuse basketball sophomore power forward Donnie Freeman has been fantastic in his two games since returning from a lower-body injury. Let's see how he and the rest of the Orange roster fare on Saturday at Pitt.