KVSP 
Who’s Playing
Syracuse Orange @ Tennessee Volunteers
Current Records: Syracuse 4-2, Tennessee 7-0
How To Watch
- When: Tuesday, December 3, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. ET
- Where: Thompson-Boling Arena — Knoxville, Tennessee
- TV: ESPN
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online Streaming: Catch select College Basketball matches on Fubo (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $5.00
What to Know
Orange fans better hope the squad plays one heck of a game on Tuesday as the odds are decidedly against them. They are taking a road trip to face off against the Tennessee Volunteers at 7:30 p.m. ET at Thompson-Boling Arena. The Orange are strutting in with some offensive muscle as they’ve averaged 81 points per game this season.
Syracuse took a loss when they played away from home last Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Wednesday. They came out on top against Cornell by a score of 82-72. That ten point margin sets a new team best for the Orange this season.
Donnie Freeman and Elijah Moore were among the main playmakers for Syracuse as the former dropped a double-double on 23 points and 12 rebounds and the latter went 7 for 12 en route to 19 points plus seven rebounds. Freeman’s performance made up for a slower contest against Texas Tech last Friday.
Meanwhile, Tennessee waltzed into their matchup on Wednesday with six straight wins… but they left with seven. They blew past the Skyhawks, posting a 78-35 win. The Volunteers have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won five matches by 22 points or more this season.
Tennessee’s win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Felix Okpara, who dropped a double-double on ten points and 11 rebounds. Okpara had some trouble finding his footing against Baylor last Friday, so this was a nice turnaround. Zakai Zeigler was another key player, almost dropping a double-double on 11 points and nine assists.
Tennessee was working as a unit and finished the game with 22 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as UT Martin only posted eight.
Syracuse’s victory was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 4-2. As for Tennessee, their win bumped their record up to 7-0.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Syracuse has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 43 rebounds per game. However, it’s not like Tennessee struggles in that department as they’ve been averaging 38.6. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we’ll see if one team can grab an edge.
Syracuse lost to Tennessee on the road by a decisive 73-56 margin in their previous matchup back in November of 2023. Can Syracuse avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We’ll find out soon enough.
Odds
Tennessee is a big 18.5-point favorite against Syracuse, according to the latest college basketball odds.
Bettors have moved against the Volunteers slightly, as the game opened with the Volunteers as a 20.5-point favorite.
The over/under is 143.5 points.
See college basketball picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.
Series History
Tennessee won the only game these two teams have played in the last year.
- Nov 20, 2023 – Tennessee 73 vs. Syracuse 56
