Syracuse men's basketball (8-8, 2-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) has won two straight conference games. The road to three consecutive victories is no easy feat when Syracuse takes on a transformed Louisville (12-5, 5-1 ACC) team from last season.
At the end of last season the Cardinals fired then-head coach Kenny Payne after two years with a combined 12-52 record. Only 15 days later, Louisville hired Charleston head coach Pat Kelsey to take over. Kelsey took the Cougars to March Madness each of the past two seasons and averaged 25 wins per year.
The changes at the top also impacted the Cardinals roster, as all 12 scholarship players from the 2023-2024 season transferred to other schools. Kelsey brought in 12 additions from the transfer portal and one freshman. Three of the transfer additions, James Scott, Kobe Rodgers and Reyne Smith, followed Kelsey from Charleston.
“It was a huge advantage for those guys to be with me as well to help implement our system and our culture,” Kelsey said.
Smith led Charleston in scoring last season and has not stopped his productive output with the Cardinals. This season he's averaging close to 14 points per game and his 61 three-pointers are the most in the ACC.
“I think he's one of the better shooters, pure shooters, in college basketball,” Kelsey said.
For one of the most historic programs in the country, expectations were unclear because of the first-year coach and new additions, but the Cardinals have started out strong. Louisville embarrassed then #14 Indiana by 28 in primetime and had close battles with top-10 teams, Kentucky and Duke. After dropping their ACC opener to the Blue Devils, the Cardinals have won five straight conference battles including their first win against Virginia in Charlottesville since 1990.
For the Orange, not only have they won two straight ACC games, but for the first time since mid-November they have won two contests in a row. There have been a couple of changes that seem to be working well for SU. Guard Lucas Taylor has caught fire recently from beyond the arc and earned a starting spot, replacing forward Chris Bell.
.@Cuse_MBB guard Lucas Taylor started off the year just 1/13 from beyond the arc. Since then, the senior is shooting 50% on threes over the last five games.@Austin_Barach narrated Taylor's first triple of the day.
— WAER Sports (@WAERSports) January 11, 2025
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The senior has made 14 of his last 28 three pointers and is averaging over 12 points since joining the starting five. After starting the season 1-13 from distance, Taylor's growth has been a bright spot for the Orange in an up and down season.
Another change in the past two games has been the absence of forward Donnie Freeman who was ruled out for the Georgia Tech game after being spotted with a boot on during warmups. SU's star freshman has averaged 13 points and 8 rebounds a game this season. But with the hype he received as the sixth best prospect according to ESPN, the results haven't always lived up to the expectations.
While Donnie Freeman scored 24 points tonight, @swilkes04 and @adam_gotkin weren't blown away.
— WAER Sports Talk (@WAERSportsTalk) December 11, 2024
They both say that it hasn't felt like Freeman has taken over games yet.
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At times Freeman has looked like a number one option, but there have certainly been stretches where he has gone cold. Add the fact that the two games the freshman has missed have been some of SU's best wins and it further complicates the state of Syracuse's program. Additionally, Freeman is only averaging 25 minutes per game so at times, Adrian Autry doesn't put him on the court as much as one would think a top recruit deserves to be.
After SU's win over Boston College on Saturday, Autry stated that Freeman was day-to-day with a leg injury. But center Eddie Lampkin Jr. also had something to add about the freshman's availability.
“I think he got the scouts [coming] next game, so let's see what he do,” Lampkin Jr. on Freeman's potential return against Louisville.
Despite the freshman's absence, SU has won both games and forward Jyáre Davis has filled in nicely averaging 10 points and 9 boards in those two contests. Syracuse might need to be at full strength to compete with a Louisville squad that has won six straight games. Although Syracuse has proven against Georgia Tech and Boston College it can find success shorthanded.
Gametime from the JMA Wireless Dome is at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. WAER’s coverage on 88.3 FM and waer.org begins at 6:30 with McClurg Remodeling Countdown to Tip-off.