Syracuse basketball picked up a 40-point win, showing early dominance in the 2025-26 slate.
Syracuse basketball was aggressive on the defensive side of the floor from the opening tip, forcing multiple turnovers that led to easy transition buckets. This helped the Orange build their early lead, and they never looked back. They finished the day with 24 fastbreak points and outscored DSU 46 to 20 in the paint.
Head coach Adrian Autry praised the team’s defensive effort and intensity, particularly from Donnie Freeman and William Kyle III.
“He’s been tenacious, using his size, strength, and frame,” Autry said. “Our whole front court came in and did a really good job.”
Freeman dropped 20 points for the second game in a row, leading all scorers, along with his 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Kyle was everywhere on the floor, finishing with 8 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, and 6 blocks.
“I definitely take a lot of pride in that,” Kyle. “I’m doing whatever I can to bring energy to the team.”
The Orange defense stood tall all game, forcing 15 turnovers and holding the Hornets to under 50 points and just 21.5% shooting for the game, the lowest shooting percentage by an opponent since the 2014-15 season.
Kiyan Anthony, making his first career start in the place of J.J. Starling, shined offensively once again. He ended the game with 19 points on 8-11 shooting and 2-4 from behind the arc, with 4 assists and 3 rebounds to go with it. The star freshman has begun this season playing as advertised.
“I think Kiyan set the tone offensively,” Autry stated. “Getting to the rim aggressively, not settling.”
Fellow freshman Sadiq White was a key contributor off the bench. Despite leaving the game and briefly limping to the locker room with a lower-body injury, he returned shortly after and gave the Orange a nice boost. He finished the contest with 10 points and 4 rebounds.
Despite the wire-to-wire clobbering, Syracuse struggled at the free-throw line, shooting just 11-21 (52%) for the game. Improving their consistency at the line will be crucial as the competition level rises in the upcoming weeks.
Syracuse basketball will look to carry this momentum into their matchup against Drexel next Saturday.