Syracuse (12-6, 1-4 Atlantic Coast) returns home after a two-game road trip to play Pittsburgh (8-10, 0-5) on Tuesday night in the Carrier Dome. The Orange most recently lost at Florida State in double overtime, while the Panthers just dropped a game to Georgia Tech.

Here’s what to know about the matchup.

All-time series: Syracuse leads 66-45

Last time they played: In the second of two matchups last year, Pittsburgh beat Syracuse, 80-75, at the Petersen Events Center on Feb. 11. Andrew White and John Gillon led the Orange, as each scored 20 points. The Panthers return no players who played in the last contest with SU.

The Pittsburgh report: The Panthers are generally a bad team. They’re ranked 202 in the country per Kenpom.com, the fourth-worst Syracuse opponent, just ahead of Texas Southern, Cornell and Colgate. Overall, the Panthers rank in the bottom five in every major stat listed on the ACC’s website, other than opponent field goal percentage and field goals made. They score the fewest amount of points per game (65.9) and are the only team in the conference with a negative scoring margin on the season. Pittsburgh is one of the worst teams in the country at keeping control of the ball, as they have a turnover percentage of 22, meaning that nearly a quarter of its possessions end up in a turnover.

The Panthers also don’t make a strong impact in the hustle stats, either, ranking in the 300s in block (343) and steal percentage (326), per Kenpom.

How Syracuse beats Pittsburgh: Get the offense going. Syracuse really shouldn’t lose this game, given how mightily Pittsburgh has struggled this season. As long as SU doesn’t get in its own way by struggling to make shots, the Orange should be fine.

Stat to know: 33.0

Pittsburgh’s opponent offensive rebounding percentage — the rate at which the Panthers allow opponents to rebound their own misses — is 33 percent, meaning that the Panthers allow opponents to grab nearly one-third of all available offensive rebounds. That ranks them at 306th in the country. Comparatively, Syracuse is third with its own offensive rebounding percentage of 38.4

Kenpom odds: Kenpom gives Syracuse a 90 percent chance to win and predicts a 68-53 game.

Player to watch: Marcus Carr, guard, No. 5

Carr leads the team in assists per game (3.9) and is second on the team in points. He’s also third on the team in 3-pointers made but is second on the team in 3-point percentage by a wide margin and is an efficient shooter. If Syracuse can shut him down, it should stunt the Pitt offense.

Published on January 15, 2018 at 10:14 pm

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