The No. 25-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish (14-5) travel to play the Syracuse Orange (13-8) in what should be a low-scoring game. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Thursday, Jan. 28 and can be seen on ES2 and ES3.
The Orange are hoping to rebound after their 73-65 loss to Virginia on Sunday. Michael Gbinije was the game’s leading scorer with 24 points. The Fighting Irish, meanwhile, are coming off a 76-49 win against Boston College on Saturday. Bonzie Colson led the team in scoring by registering 16 points on 6-for-11 shooting.
Colson has been hot for the Fighting Irish, averaging 16.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 0.8 steals, and 0.8 blocks over the past five games.
Half-court execution will be of utmost importance when two of the nation’s slowest-paced teams square off. Syracuse ranks 335th in possessions per game (65.2), while Notre Dame is 339th (64.9).
Syracuse is a slim two-point favorite at home against Notre Dame. According to the oddsmakers, the Over/Under (O/U) is currently 141 points. The Orange have gone 13-8 Straight Up (SU) and 10-10 Against The Spread (ATS). The Orange are one of the best in Division I in terms of three-point field goals, making 8.0 shots per game from beyond the arc.
As for their opponent, the Fighting Irish have records of 7-9-1 ATS and 14-5 SU. The Fighting Irish are the better of the two teams when it comes to assist-to-turnover ratio, ranking 12th in Division I at 1.57.
This game marks the season’s first head-to-head clash between these conference foes. Their previous game was an Orange victory, bumping their SU record to 6-4 over Notre Dame in their most recent meetings. The teams are even ATS, with a 5-5 record. Syracuse held the edge in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers once, while Notre Dame was never able to do so in their most recent five games.
Predictions: SU Winner – Syr, ATS Winner – ND, O/U – Over
Notes
Syracuse is 10-3 SU in its last 13 games at home.
Syracuse is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Notre Dame.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Syracuse’s last 5 games when playing Notre Dame.
Syracuse is 3-5-1 ATS in its last 9 games when playing at home against Notre Dame.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Syracuse’s last 6 games when playing at home against Notre Dame.
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish average 79.2 points per game, ranking 58th in the nation. The Syracuse Orange rank 37th in points allowed with 64.7.
In its last game, Notre Dame won by a margin of 27 points. Syracuse is 5-0 in games decided by a margin of 18 points or more. Notre Dame has a 6-0 record in blowouts.
The Syracuse Orange average 65.2 possessions per game and 1.081 points per possession, while the Notre Dame Fighting Irish earn fewer possessions (64.9) but more points per possession (1.221).
Notre Dame has an average effective field goal percentage of 56.6% (ranked 13th in the nation). Syracuse is a losing 1-3 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
On average, Syracuse attempts 24.0 three pointers and Notre Dame attempts 19.0. Both teams have winning records when they have 20 or more three point attempts. The Syracuse Orange sit at 11-7 and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish are 7-3.
Syracuse ranks 88th in blocks per game with 4.3 and Notre Dame ranks 99th with 4.1 blocks per game.
The Syracuse Orange rank 16th in steals this season, with an average of 8.6 per game. When the Notre Dame Fighting Irish allow at least 8 steals, they have a winning 2-1 record.
