Orange D Swarms Hornets

Saturday, November 8

Syracuse, N.Y.

1:00 PM

Syracuse University

2-0,0-0ACC

Delaware State

0-2,0-0MEAC

Delaware St.

Syracuse

11/8/2025 3:37:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Syracuse (2-0) held its opponent below 50 points for the second straight game and took down Delaware State (0-2), 83-43, on Saturday at the JMA Wireless Dome.

The Orange limited Delaware State to .215 (14-of-65) shooting from the field, the lowest mark by an opponent since Nov. 25, 2014, when Syracuse held Loyola (Md.) to a .192 (10-of-52) percentage.

The Orange were led by Donnie Freeman, who posted 20 points on 6-of-8 (.750) shooting to go along with five boards and four assists. Kiyan Anthony made his first career start, notching 19 points in the win. William Kyle III had a career-high six blocked shots, tied his collegiate-best effort with 13 rebounds, and added eight points and four assists.

How the Game was Decided
The Orange never trailed in the victory over Delaware State, building a comfortable, 10-2 cushion early. After the Hornets got on the board with a string of baskets to cut the Syracuse lead to 17-9 around the 10-minute mark, the Orange proceeded to go on a 10-0 surge over a three-minute span to open an insurmountable lead.

Freeman paced the offense during the 10-point streak with seven points. Freeman scored with a layup and a dunk before he capped it off with an and-one play where he finished off a layup through contact before sending home the free throw. Bryce Zephir added a three-point make to round out the scoring.

The defense was stingy over the stretch, holding the Hornets to 0-of-6 shooting from the field while forcing two turnovers.

Start Fast, Finish Faster
For the second consecutive game, the Orange built upon a lead early without letting up as the game went on. Over the first 11 minutes against the Hornets, Syracuse led 24-9 while shooting 10-of-18 (.556) from the field. The Syracuse defense held the Hornets to just 2-of-14 (.243) from the field over the same time.

Freeman was the catalyst to the fast start, scoring 13 points on 5-of-6 (.833) shooting to go along with a steal, block, an assist and two boards in the opening half. Anthony joined Freeman in the double-digit scoring in the opening frame with 12 of his own. Syracuse kept the Hornets looking for offense in the opening half, keeping the Hornets to just 5-of-33 (.152) shooting from the field. The Orange took a 40-17 lead into the break.

Anthony did not let up in the second half, finishing through contact with a layup to kickoff the scoring after the break. Kyle III held it down on defense, recording two blocks in the first two minutes. The Orange knocked down 8-of-11 of its shots to pull away and leave the Hornets behind.

Stingy Defense
The matchup against Delaware State marked the second consecutive game where the Orange held an opponent to under 50 points. It represented the first time since the start of the 2014-15 season that the Orange held an opponent to under 50 points in back-to-back games since Syracuse did so against Kennesaw State and Hampton.

William Kyle III racked up the most blocks (six) by a Syracuse player in two years.

Notable Numbers:

The Orange have held their opponents to just 90 points over the first two games of the year. This marks the lowest number of points surrendered in the opening two games of a season since the 2014-15 campaign when the Orange allowed just 89 points against Kennesaw State and Hampton.
The Hornets recorded just one three-point make in the game.
Kyle III had a career-high six blocks, the first time a member of the Syracuse roster had five or more blocks in a game since Maliq Brown had six against Louisville in February of 2024.
Sadiq White Jr. notched 10 points, the first time he has reached double digits in his collegiate career.
Three different players had four assists, with Freeman, Anthony, and Kyle III all reaching the mark.
The Orange saw five different members of the roster knock down a shot from beyond the arc.
Nate Kingz recorded a +/- of 22 in 15 minutes during the opening half, leading all players.
The Orange shot 16-of-25 (.640) from the field in the second half.
Freeman was the first player to record 20 points in back-to-back games to open a season since Judah Mintz did so in the 2023-24 campaign.

Up Next
The Orange will now travel to Philadelphia to take on Drexel at XFinity Mobile Arena on Saturday, November 15th. The game is set to tip-off at 3:30 and stream on Peacock.

Tickets
Season and individual tickets are available at cuse.com/feature/basketball-tickets

For complete coverage of Syracuse men's basketball, follow the team on X (@Cuse_MBB) and Instagram (cuse_mbb).