Ball Durham
Fansided

Carrier Dome set for biggest game of year hosting Duke basketball team

By Kevin Connelly

SYRACUSE, NY - FEBRUARY 23: General view of the Carrier Dome during the game between the Duke Blue Devils and the Syracuse Orange in the second half on February 23, 2019 in Syracuse, New York. Duke defeated Syracuse 75-65. (Photo by Rich Barnes/Getty Images)
SYRACUSE, NY - FEBRUARY 23: General view of the Carrier Dome during the game between the Duke Blue Devils and the Syracuse Orange in the second half on February 23, 2019 in Syracuse, New York. Duke defeated Syracuse 75-65. (Photo by Rich Barnes/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Syracuse Orange will host the Duke basketball team on Saturday night and the Carrier Dome is preparing for the biggest game of the season.

There is nothing that gets fair-weathered Syracuse fans into the Carrier Dome like the Duke Blue Devils coming to town and that will be the case once again on Saturday night.

Syracuse missed the hype train of Zion Williamson in upstate New York last season due to his knee injury, but the thousands of people that flock to the Dome saw the Orange blow a five-point halftime lead due to the stellar play of R.J. Barrett and Alex O’Connell.

More from Ball Durham

This season, the question still remains if Syracuse is good, but as a team squarely on the bubble of making the NCAA Tournament, a win over Duke would definitely put them going in the right direction.

The Orange are 13-8 on the season and 6-4 in ACC play with its best win of the season coming against the then No. 18 Virginia Cavaliers on the road, 63-55 in overtime.

Jim Boeheim‘s team has been led by Elijah Hughes, who is averaging 19.3 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game on 43.2 percent shooting from the floor and 37.3 percent from 3-point range.

Boeheim’s son, Buddy, has been a revelation for the Orange in his sophomore season by averaging   16.4 points per game on 40.3 percent shooting from 3-point range, while coveted freshman Joe Girard is averaging 11.8 points per game on 34.1 percent shooting from 3-point territory.

Syracuse has two forwards, but both are significantly prone to foul trouble in Marek Dolezaj and Bourama Sidibe.

The duo is tied for the team-high in rebounds at 7.1 per game, but Dolezaj is more gifted than Sidibe, offensively, averaging 10.0 and 5.3 points per game, respectively.

A season-high crowd of over 30,000 people is expected in the Carrier Dome to see the most historic program in college basketball history and hoping that its Orange can try and knock off Duke.

Tipoff is scheduled for 8:00pm EST on Saturday, February 1 and the game will be televised on ESPN.

Trending. Ranking Duke basketball's 10 key players thru 20 games. light

Home/Duke Basketball