Support The Daily Orange this holiday season! The money raised between now and the end of the year will go directly toward aiding our students. Donate today.

The Christmas break is over for Syracuse, and now it turns its attention to Atlantic Coast Conference play for the rest of the season. The Orange’s first conference game of the year was an 84-62 blowout defeat on the road against Virginia. But they look to get their first ACC win against old rival Pittsburgh at the JMA Wireless Dome tomorrow.

Like the Orange, the Panthers lost their opening ACC matchup, a 79-70 defeat to Clemson at home. But they still have a star guard and one of the best rebounding teams in the conference.

Here’s everything you need to know about Pittsburgh (9-3):

All-time series

Syracuse leads 73-50.

Last time they played

The Orange were trying to stay afloat in the ACC last February when they traveled to Petersen Events Center to face the Panthers, who won five of their six conference games in the month. Pitt only led at halftime by four points, but outscored SU 62-49 in the second half.

Syracuse was actually more efficient from the field, shooting 50% compared to Pittsburgh’s mark of 47.1%. But the Panthers shot at a higher volume than the Orange and made 16 3-pointers. Blake Hinson, who came off the bench that day, finished with 22 points as five of his teammates ended in double figures. However, Syracuse forward Benny Williams led all scorers with 24 points, a career-high for the forward.

KenPom odds

Pittsburgh has 52% chance of winning, with a projected score of 74-73.

The Panthers report

Although the Panthers still have their centerpiece in Hinson, they are a vastly different team from the one that took them to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2016. In the portal, Pitt picked up Rhode Island transfer Ishmael Leggett, who is the Panthers second-leading scorer with 13 points per game.

Even as Jeff Capel’s squad ranks 10th in the ACC in field goal percentage, it ranks fifth in scoring. The reason for this scoring success is through the Panthers’ rebounding. Pitt leads the conference in rebounds per game (42.4). And although the Panthers have no player in the top 10 in the conference in rebounding, they have the most with at least 50 rebounds (six). Hinson and Leggett will contribute heavily when tallying boards, but their teammates Carlton Carrington and Zack Austin are vital in this effort as well.

How Syracuse beats Pitt

Syracuse will need to somehow keep up with Pittsburgh’s rebounding, something its starting lineup has struggled at times this season. The bench will certainly scrap its way inside the paint to collect rebounds, but the Orange will have to have one of their better shooting performances.

They need to show their shooting performance against Oregon (56.6% from the field) wasn’t a fluke. More specifically, the Orange can’t have a stretch of playing times like they had against Niagara in the final five minutes. Adrian Autry knows that type of play is unacceptable and he explained in the postgame presser. If SU keeps up with Pitt’s rebounding and has another consistent shooting performance, then it can take home its first conference win of the season.

Stat to know: 25.6%

While Pitt has put up impressive rebounding numbers, most of its success from the boards has come from the defensive side. The Panthers rank eighth in the ACC in offensive rebounding rate with a mark of 35.0% per KenPom. Although forward Federiko Federiko ranks third in the conference with 34 offensive rebounds, the rest of the team struggles to keep up.

Player to watch: Blake Hinson, guard, No. 2

Hinson is undoubtedly the team’s star. He averages 20.3 points per game which ranks third in the conference. Much of Hinson’s success has come from beyond the arc, leading the ACC in 3-pointers with 45. His scoring output has been the product of progressing through two schools before arriving in Pittsburgh.

As a freshman and sophomore starter at Ole Miss, he could only average eight and 10 points, respectively. He transferred to Iowa State, but didn’t play in two seasons due to an undisclosed, non-COVID-19 medical condition. But after one season at Pitt where he came off the bench, Hinson is now one of the ACC’s best players.

Published on December 29, 2023 at 3:48 pm

Contact Henry: henrywobrien1123@gmail.com