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With a 2-1 start to Atlantic Coast Conference play, Syracuse enters Tuesday seventh in the league. Following a narrow loss to Clemson on New Year’s Eve, the Orange went on the road and posted two dominant performances.

Led by the breakout of sophomore Donnie Freeman, SU first built a 20-point lead over Georgia Tech to win by 10. Then, the Orange won similarly versus Pittsburgh, showing clear signs of offensive improvement.

Up next for Syracuse is a test against the ACC’s last-place team. In its first season under head coach Luke Loucks, Florida State has struggled to find a rhythm. The Seminoles enter on a three-game losing streak to start ACC play and recently lost by 44 points to NC State at home Saturday.

Here’s how our beat writers think Syracuse (11-5, 2-1 ACC) will fare against Florida State (7-9, 0-3 ACC) Tuesday night in the JMA Wireless Dome:

Aiden Stepansky (12-4)
Keep it rolling
Syracuse 83, Florida State 70

Syracuse should be thanking the basketball gods — also known as the ACC schedule makers. SU’s start to conference play seems to be getting easier by the day. Of course, the Orange needed to perform and take care of business to make the easy appearance turn into victories. But a test against FSU and later versus Boston College means SU will play the bottom-four teams in the conference for four straight games.

The Seminoles posted, as Loucks put it Monday, an “abysmal” performance versus NC State, and I don’t expect the Orange to beat FSU by 40-plus points. However, with a much-improved offense of late and a defense that continues to distinguish itself as one of the best in the country, SU should have no trouble finding its third-straight win.

Syracuse’s offense produced over 80 points in back-to-back games, and the Seminoles allow 81.3 points per game — the most in the ACC. Some added intrigue for this one is the possibility of seeing Calvin Russell III. Funnily enough, FSU also has a 2026 football recruit playing basketball in Jasen Lopez. Lopez joined the team on Jan. 8 and is yet to appear in a game.

Whether we see Russell or Lopez is uncertain, and could be based on how large a lead the Orange can garner. If Syracuse doesn’t win this game, it has major issues. But I don’t see SU having to worry about that.

Cooper Andrews (13-3)
Ban the chop
Syracuse 87, Florida State 63

Florida State is coming off an utterly egregious 113-69 loss to NC State — a score similar to the average game of my middle school basketball team. Loucks’ squad will enter the Dome Tuesday with the Orange smelling blood in the water. And this time, albeit against the school who could very well finish last in the ACC, Syracuse will deliver its first wire-to-wire stampede of the season.

In what should be SU’s third consecutive victory before another easier contest looms at BC on Saturday, the Orange will continue to show progress from 3-point range and dominate on defense.

They can rely on the sheer might of Freeman — as well as J.J. Starling fresh off 19 points against Pitt — to carry their offense to a high-scoring night. FSU has the conference’s worst scoring defense and Syracuse is trending upwards; that’s a bad mismatch for the Seminoles.

I really think this is the simplest result of the season for SU. It’s a clear chance to take the bull by the horns and give its fanbase a meaningful blowout win, which Syracuse hasn’t done against a Power Four team yet this season. But, to my fellow scribe Aiden, I say let Russell pop a few 3s. It can’t hurt when the Orange will be leading big from start to finish.

Justin Girshon (12-4)
Another one
Syracuse 81, Florida State 72

Good things happen when Freeman is on the court. In the seven games that the forward has played, SU is 6-1. In the nine he missed, the Orange went 5-4.

Good news for Syracuse: Freeman is healthy, and he’s coming off arguably the best two-game stretch of his collegiate career. Also good news for Autry’s squad: Florida State is coming off the worst defeat in program history.

That said, this is still an interesting matchup. The Seminoles have one of the quickest KenPom Adjusted Tempos (12th nationally), while the Orange — despite Autry’s preseason desire to play fast — are around the middle of the pack (173rd nationally). However, it doesn’t matter how fast a team plays if they can’t get stops.

FSU has failed to limit its opponent to score 75 or fewer points since conference play began, leading to a 0-3 record. I see the same script ensuing in the JMA Wireless Dome, as Freeman goes for another 20-plus points, the Orange score over 80 points and SU’s defense does enough to offset the Seminoles’ fast pace.

Published on January 12, 2026 at 10:10 pm