Game Details: Saturday, December 13th, Syracuse, N.Y., 4:00 p.m.
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After earning a victory over Saint Joseph’s earlier this week, Syracuse (5-3) is back in action against Hofstra (7-4) at the JMA Wireless Dome on Saturday afternoon.
Quick Turnaround
Syracuse has a quick turnaround for its next matchup after topping Saint Joseph’s on Thursday. The Saturday tilt with Hofstra serves as the third leg of a seven-game homestand.
In their first game back in over one week, the Orange used a second-half push to defeat the Saint Joseph’s Hawks. Senior William Kyle III picked up his second double-double of the season, going for 12 points and 11 rebounds. Meanwhile, sophomore Tyler Betsey led the offense with 16 points to tie a career-high.
Three others joined Kyle III and Betsey in double digits, with seniors Nate Kingz and J.J. Starling going for 14 and 11 points, respectively, and junior Naithan George scoring 10.
Defensive Metrics
Syracuse’s defense continues to leave opponents looking for answers this season, with the matchup against Saint Joseph’s being no exception. The Orange held the Hawks to their lowest field goal percentage of the season at 20-of-56 (.357).
The Hawks managed to jump out to a fast start in which they shot 6-of-9 (.667) in the opening six minutes. For the remainder of the game, Syracuse held the Hawks to just 14-of-47 (.298) from the floor.
Syracuse has held opponents to just 64.4 points per game, the 21st best mark of any Division I program. Opponents are shooting just 198-of-521 (.380) from the field and 51-of-176 (.290) from beyond the arc.
Kyle III has been a key facet to this effort, racking up a team-high 26 blocks while patrolling the paint. Meanwhile, George has picked up 16 steals.
Defend the Dome
The Orange are now 5-0 at home this season, winning games by an average of 18.6 points. Syracuse’s offense is averaging 75.8 points at the JMA Wireless Dome. Syracuse is looking to start 6-0 at home for the second time in the past three seasons.
The Orange are shooting 140-of-277 (.505) from the field at home compared to opponents’ 95-of-281 (.338) mark. Additionally, foes have been unable to find a rhythm from deep, converting just 20-of-90 (.222) attempts from beyond the arc. Syracuse has also dominated the glass at home, averaging 36.4 rebounds per game, and has forced 16.0 turnovers per contest while committing just 11.4.
Kyle III has been a defensive anchor at home, averaging 8.6 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game at the JMA Wireless Dome.
Scouting Hofstra
Hofstra comes to Syracuse as winners of five of its last six games, including a victory at Pittsburgh less than a week ago. The Pride has spent most of that stretch on the road, with their lone home game being their most recent win over Division III foe Old Westbury.
Hofstra has held opponents to 73 points or less in each of the past six games, including four where they kept their opponents to 60 or less.
Junior Cruz Davis powers the Pride’s offense, averaging 20.6 points this season. The Plano, Texas native spent his freshman year at Iona before transferring to St. John’s for one season and then landing at Hofstra a year ago.
In his second season at Hofstra, Davis has been the catalyst offensively. He played all 40 minutes on the road against Pitt and scored a career-high 36 points on 14-of-25 (.560) shooting, including five makes from beyond the arc. He was also the team’s assists leader, dishing out seven and recording the team’s lone block in the triumph over the Panthers.
Freshman Preston Edmead has been a key contributor, averaging 13.7 points per game. The rookie has notched double figures in all but three games. Edmead leads the team in assists, recording 58 through 11 contests.
In his fifth season as Hofstra’s head coach, Speedy Claxton boasts an 88-56 record, including three consecutive 20-win campaigns from 2021-24. Hofstra’s 25 wins in 2022-23 earned him CAA Coach of the Year honors and included a regular season title and NIT berth.
Claxton starred as a player at Hofstra from 1996-2000, scoring over 2,000 points and leading the Pride to the NCAA Tournament before having his No. 10 jersey retired. The two-time America East Player of the Year went on to a decade-long NBA career that included winning a championship with San Antonio in 2003, then returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach for seven years before taking over as head coach in April 2021.
Series History
The Orange and Pride have clashed three times before, with Syracuse winning each of the prior matchups by an average of 18.7 points. This marks the first pairing between the two since December 2006 when Syracuse won, 85-60.
Syracuse Tickets
Season and individual tickets are available at cuse.com/feature/basketball-tickets
