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Syracuse Basketball Looks for 5-in-a-row as it heads on the Road to Clemson

Cuse.com

Two weeks ago, Syracuse (15-9, 7-4) was dead in the water at 11-9 after losing three out of four and still seeking its first road win. Fast forward two weeks and the Orange is on fire with a four-game winning streak featuring two wins over top-10 ranked opponents and the team's first road victory. 

All of that could be undone though with a loss to Clemson (13-9, 3-7) on Tuesday. 

The Tigers are reeling following a 109-61 shelling at Florida State over the weekend, but this is not a team that Head Coach Jim Boeheim's group can sleep on. Redshirt senior Jaron Blossomgame leads a very veteran Clemson team in scoring with 17.7 points per game while shooting close to 52 percent from the field. 

Syracuse vs. Clemson Basketball Coverage Begins at 7:30 on WAER 88.3-FM

Despite Syracuse starting two graduate transfers, it is Clemson that has the more experienced lineup. Of the seven Tigers to play more than 20 minutes a game, the youngest is sophomore Marcquise Reed, while every other player is a junior or older.

A win for the Orange would boost them to 8-4 in the ACC, pushing them out of a tie with following its loss to Virginia Monday night. A victory would also extend Syracuse's winning streak to five, pushing them even further into the conversation for a spot in the NCAA tournament come March.

Credit Cuse.com
Fans stormed the court to celebrate the 1,000th time that a team has lost while playing against Syracuse under Jim Boeheim.

As of Monday, ESPN's Joe Lunardi had the Orange among the next four out in his most recent edition of "Bracketology." Lundardi also currently has Clemson as a part of his last four teams to make the tournament, meaning that this ACC matchup carries even more clout than a quality conference win. 

Freshman Tyus Battle is coming off his best game of his young SU career with 23 points on 7-11 shooting against Virginia of the weekend.  Battle says the teams senses the urgency needed if they want to have better chances for the post-season.

"As a team we all bought in.  We now we're trying to make this NCAA push, trying to make the tournament.  And we knew we ave to go on a big run.  We bought in on defense, on offense, we're moving, our hands are up and we're playing really well right now."

Redshirt senior Andrew White matched Battle point for point on Saturday and the pair of them will lead this potentially lethal Orange attack into South Carolina. 

One thing that should ease the mind of most Syracuse fans is that Clemson struggles from behind the arc. They have the second-worst three point shooting percentage as a team in the ACC. The Tigers also rank 13th in rebounds per game, another area where the Orange often struggle. On paper, it definitely looks like Boeheim's bunch matches up well with Clemson.