Game facts
NC State (16-9, 6-6 ACC) at Syracuse (17-8, 6-6 ACC)
Game time: Wednesday, Feb. 14, 9 p.m. — Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y.
Television: ACC Network
Probable starters
NC State
PG — 10 Braxton Beverly (6-0, 180, Fr., 10.1 ppg., 2.4 rpg., 4.0 apg., 1.0 spg.)
PG — 11 Markell Johnson (6-1, 165, So., 8.7 ppg., 3.3 rpg., 7.8 apg., 1.9 spg.)
SF — 2 Torin Dorn (6-5, 210, R-Jr., 13.6 ppg., 6.4 rpg., 1.5 apg., 1.1 spg.)
G or PF — 12 Allerik Freeman (6-3, 200, 5th-Sr., 14.1 ppg., 4.0 rpg., 2.4 apg., 1.1 spg.) or 0 Abdul-Malik Abu (6-8, 240, Sr., 6.2 ppg., 3.9 rpg., 0.5 apg.)
C — 14 Omer Yurtseven (7-0, 245, So., 13.8 ppg., 6.9 rpg., 0.4 apg., 1.7 bpg.)
Syracuse
PG — 23 Franklin Howard (6-5, 205, Jr., 15.0 ppg., 3.4 rpg., 5.1 apg., 2.0 spg.)
SG — 25 Tyus Battle (6-6, 205, So., 20.3 ppg., 3.0 rpg., 1.7 apg., 1.6 spg.)
SG — 11 Oshae Brissett (6-8, 210, Fr., 14.2 ppg., 9.0 rpg., 1.0 apg., 1.2 spg.)
SF — 21 Marek Dolezaj (6-9, 180, Fr., 4.7 ppg., 5.1 rpg., 1.6 apg.)
C — 13 Pascal Chukwu (7-2, 228, R-Jr., 5.8 ppg., 6.6 rpg., 0.4 apg., 2.7 bpg.)
Syracuse
Location: Syracuse, N.Y.
Nickname: Orange
2016-17 record: 19-15 overall, 10-8 ACC
2017 postseason: Lost 85-80 to Ole Miss in the second round of the NIT
Coach: Jim Boeheim 42nd season overall and at Syracuse (920-365, with 101 wins vacated)
Notes
Syracuse season overview: The Orange were nearly on life support in terms of trying to reach the NCAA Tournament after suffering a 101-90 double overtime loss at Florida State Jan. 13.
Syracuse fell to 12-6 overall and 1-4 in the ACC, and was in the midst of a four-game losing skid. Syracuse has responded by winning five of its last seven games against the weaker foes in the ACC, with a sweep of Pittsburgh and wins over Boston College, at Louisville and Wake Forest.
The Orange had already entered the season short-handed, and then South Florida graduate transfer Geno Thorpe left the team and freshman point guard Howard Washington suffered a season-ending knee injury. Redshirt freshman forward Matthew Moyer has a sprained ankle and missed the Orange’s last game against Wake Forest on Sunday. Syracuse is down to just six healthy scholarship players.
Syracuse tendencies: The Orange has relied on junior point guard Franklin Howard and sophomore shooting guard Tyus Battle, plus a strong zone defense, this season.
Syracuse is second in the ACC in allowing 63.4 points per game, and it has only surrendered 64.1 points per contest in 12 league outings. Opposing teams are shooting just 33.3 percent on three-pointers.
Battle is second in the ACC at 20.3 points per game, and Howard ranks 13th. Howard leads the ACC in steals per game (2.0) and redshirt junior center Pascal Chukwu has used his 7-foot-2 frame to be tied for second in the league with 2.7 blocks per game.
Perimeter: Battle is one of the most improved players in the ACC, and he’s had to be.
Battle was a touted prep recruit coming out New Jersey and originally verbally committed to Michigan. He instead broke the hearts of Wolverine fans with an a late switch to the Orange.
He was hoping to play with fellow New Jersey product Malachi Richardson last year, but then Richardson entered the NBA Draft after one year at Syracuse. Battle had to grow up fast, and he averaged 11.3 points per game and shot 36.6 percent on three-pointers as a freshman.
Battle has exploded to average 20.3 points while shooting 42.9 percent from the field and 33.1 percent from three-point range. He has played all but seven minutes of action in ACC games. He is fresh off of scoring 34 points on just 18 field goal attempts in the Orange’s 78-70 win over Wake Forest. He has been skillful at getting to the free throw line, going a combined 22 of 24 over the last two contests.
He scored a season-high 37 points and went 5 of 9 on three-pointers in that double overtime loss at Florida State. Battle has tallied 20-plus points in 13 games this season.
Howard was a heavy NC State recruiting target coming out of the Washington, D.C., area. The former Team Takeover traveling team standout had a difficult ACL tear his junior year of high school and it took time for him to get back to his former form.
He has blossomed this season under a heavy workload. Howard has played all but 18 minutes in ACC action, fouling out against FSU in the double-overtime loss, where he logged “just” 36 minutes.
Howard has scored in double figures in all but three games, and he has one double-double with 15 points, 10 assists, seven steals and five rebounds in a 72-70 win over Maryland Nov. 27. Howard has improved from 4.5 points and 3.6 assists per game last year to 15.0 points and 5.1 assists in 38.0 minutes a contest.
He is shooting 38.1 percent from the field and a respectable 34.8 percent on three-pointers.
Frontcourt: Freshman combo forward Oshae Brissett has been crucial all season for the Orange.
Brissett was a top-100 prospect at Henderson (Nev.) Findlay Prep, but returned to his home area in Toronto for his senior year at Orangeville Prep.
His shooting percentage (33.4) is his lone negative, but a part of that is having a bigger load to carry than he can handle. His athleticism has been a boost on the boards with nine double-doubles for points and rebounds, and he’s reached double figures in all but three games.
While his field goal percentage is too low, he’s shooting 32.3 percent on three-pointers and has made at least two in 10 games.
Chukwu was offered by NC State out of high school, but he picked Providence. He surprisingly left after his freshman year and landed at Syracuse, but had a fit of injuries last year in his first season of eligibility. Chukwu is shooting 62.7 percent from the field, and he’s always been considered a gifted shot blocker. He had eight blocks against both Oakland Nov. 20 and Buffalo Dec. 19.
Chukwu had 12 points and 11 rebounds to go along with the eight blocks in a 74-50 win over Oakland. He has three double-doubles for points and rebounds, and has reached at least 10 boards in six contests.
Freshman Marek Dolezaj has been forced into action with such a short-handed roster. The native of Slovakia is averaging 4.7 points and 5.1 rebounds in 25.1 minutes per game. He also has 22 blocks, including three rejections in two different games.
The slender Dolezaj isn’t a three-point threat, and he’s reached double figures in just three contests. He had 12 points and eight rebounds in a 81-63 win versus Boston College Jan. 24.
Dolezaj has played at least 34 minutes in the last six games, and he’s shooting 51.3 percent from the field.
Freshman center Bourama Sidibe has shown flashes of his considerable potential this season. He is averaging 3.7 points and 3.6 rebounds in 14.1 minutes per game, and has 17 blocks on the season.
The 6-10, 205-pounder had 18 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks in a 60-55 win at Pittsburgh Jan. 27. That was just the second time he’s reached double figures this season, and he’s missed seven full games.
Moyer is averaging 4.0 points and 4.5 rebounds in 20.0 minutes per game, and has played in 23 of 25 contests this season. Moyer practiced Monday, but it remains to be see if he can play through a badly sprained ankle.
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