Syracuse (8-5, 1-1 Atlantic Coast) resumes ACC play with a game against Notre Dame (9-4, 0-2 ACC) at 4 p.m. in the Carrier Dome on Saturday. Both teams have yet to play in the New Year as Syracuse’s last game was a win over Niagara while Notre Dame most recently defeated Alabama A&M. Notre Dame will be the first KenPom top 100 team Syracuse has played since losing to Georgetown.  

Here’s what to know about the Irish ahead of the matchup.

All-time series: Syracuse leads, 29-21

Last time they played: Syracuse defeated Notre Dame nearly one year to the day of this year’s matchup. The Orange won 72-62 behind 22 points and 10 rebounds from Elijah Hughes.  

The Notre Dame  report: Notre Dame isn’t the ACC powerhouse it’s been in year’s past or that Syracuse will see later in conference play, but the Irish don’t turn the ball over and play solid defense inside the three-point line. Notre Dame’s 13.6 turnover percentage ranks first in the country, while the Irish hold opponents to 42.3% shooting from 2-point range (20th in the country). 

Notre Dame shoots a pedestrian 33.8% from beyond the arc but rely on 3-pointers for nearly 40% of their scoring. When some combination of Prentiss Hubb, T.J. Gibbs or Dane Goodwin aren’t chucking up shots from deep, the Irish offense runs through 6’9 center John Mooney. The 245-pound senior averages 14.9 points and 13.5 rebounds. 

How Syracuse beats the Irish: For the Orange, a large part of this game will be predicated upon how well they limit Mooney. Big men derailed Syracuse during the Barclays games and against Iowa and that can likely decide Saturday’s game as well. Notre Dame isn’t a team that makes mistakes with the ball, so the Orange will need to score consistently in a half-court offense which at times has been a struggle this year. 

Syracuse needs a big game out of someone in the middle – inhibiting Mooney from taking over and maybe get him in foul trouble. This is one of those games in which Elijah Hughes will need to score early and often; early Hughes 3s could turn the game into a high scoring affair. Three of Notre Dame’s four losses have come while allowing more than 70 points. Syracuse will need Taco Time to make it happen on Saturday.  

Stat to know: 13.6 — Notre Dame’s turnover percentage is the lowest in the nation. 

KenPom odds: Syracuse has a 64% chance to win the game Saturday, with a final score prediction of 70-66 per KenPom.

Player to watch: Dane Goodwin, No. 23, guard

This whole section could be on Mooney of course, but he’ll have plenty of attention come Saturday. A sneaky player to watch could be Goodwin, a 6’6 sophomore who shoots nearly 43% from beyond the arc. He doesn’t play the most minutes for Notre Dame but if he gets hot, as he did in a 27-point performance against Detroit, Syracuse could be in trouble.

Published on January 3, 2020 at 8:48 pm

Contact Josh: jlschafe@syr.edu | @Schafer_44