Orange Fall to #3 Duke

Monday, February 16

Durham, NC

7 PM

Syracuse University

15-12,6-8ACC

101

Duke

24-2,13-1ACC

Syracuse

Duke

101

2/16/2026 9:13:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Highlights Adrian Autry Press Conference Photo Gallery

Syracuse (15-12, 6-8 ACC) couldn't overcome #3 Duke's (24-2, 13-1 ACC) red-hot second-half shooting, and fell 101-64 to the Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Monday night.

Senior William Kyle III led the Orange with 12 points while senior Nate Kingz added 10. Sophomore Ibrahim Souare paced Syracuse with seven rebounds.

Duke shot 23-of-32 (.719) in the second half, including a stretch of 13 consecutive makes. The Blue Devils finished 38-of-61 (.623) from the field, the highest shooting percentage by a Syracuse opponent this season. Freshman Cameron Boozer led Duke with 22 points and 12 rebounds while Isaiah Evans added 21 points.

How the Game Was Decided
Duke seized control early in the second half, building off an 11-0 run to close the first half with a 12-4 surge that created an insurmountable lead.

Duke extended its lead early in the second half, shooting a perfect 4-of-4 (1.000) over the first two-and-a-half minutes to go up 52-28, the Blue Devils' largest lead up to that point. Patrick Ngongba started the run with a jumper, Caleb Foster and Evans connected on 3-pointers, and Boozer capped it with a dunk and two free throws.

Competitive Start
Senior J.J. Starling found Kyle III for the game's opening bucket. Duke answered with a free throw and a Boozer jumper before Starling knocked down a 3-pointer to make it 5-3 in favor of Syracuse.

Duke edged ahead 7-5, but Syracuse responded with a jumper from sophomore Donnie Freeman and a Kingz dunk. Kyle III protected the rim with two blocks in a 50-second span, helping the Orange take a 9-7 lead at the 14:34 mark.

Syracuse's offense stalled over the next four minutes as Duke reeled off nine unanswered points to go up 16-9. Kingz snapped the drought with a 3-pointer, cutting the deficit to 16-12 with 10:33 left in the half.

Orange Battle Back Before Blue Devils Late First Half Surge
Duke capitalized on another Syracuse scoring drought, one that lasted nearly four minutes, to rattle off seven points and build a 23-12 advantage. Kyle III ended the skid with a layup before Kingz drilled another 3-pointer, but Duke answered right back. Evans threw down a dunk and Boozer hit a 3-pointer to maintain a 28-17 lead with 6:03 left in the half.

The Blue Devils went cold and Syracuse capitalized. Kyle III grabbed an offensive rebound and finished with a dunk while Kingz knocked down a 3-pointer on the next possession, bringing the score to 28-22 with 4:16 remaining in the opening frame.

Duke closed the half strong, surging on an 11-0 run over the final 2:34 to take a 40-24 lead into the break. Kingz paced Syracuse with eight first-half points. Boozer posted a double-double before the break with 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Blue Devils.

Duke's Hot Second Half Keeps Blue Devils Ahead
After falling behind by as many as 24 points, Syracuse made a push on offense, going on a 9-4 run. Kyle III threw down a pair of dunks, Freeman hit a jumper and Starling drilled a 3-pointer to bring the score to 56-37 with just less than 15 minutes to go.

Yet, the Blue Devils continued their hot shooting, pushing their streak to 13 consecutive makes in the second half to put the Orange away. Duke scored 61 points in the second half, the most points in a half by a Syracuse opponent this season.

Notable Numbers

Six different Syracuse players hit a 3-pointer for the Orange: Freeman, Starling, Kingz, George, freshman Kiyan Anthony and sophomore Tyler Betsey
Kingz extended his streak to 16 games with a 3-pointer made.
Kyle III led the team in scoring for the second time this season.
Souare led the team in rebounds for the first time this season.
The Orange recorded five blocks, Kyle III leading the way with two while Kingz, Souare and freshman Sadiq White Jr. each added one.
Anthony hit multiple 3-pointers in back-to-back games for the first time in his career.
Duke's .623 shooting percentage was its best this season.

Up Next
The Orange return to action Saturday, February 21 when they host #16/20 North Carolina at the JMA Wireless Dome. Syracuse will retire the jersey numbers of Jim Lee (#10) and Rudy Hackett (#45) at the contest, joining 17 other players who have had their numbers retired.

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