NCAA Men’s Basketball Previews – No. 9 Florida Gators vs No. 3 Syracuse Orange
In a huge early season showdown between two of the top teams in men’s college basketball this season, the Florida Gators square-off against the Syracuse Orange this Friday night at the Carrier Dome in this SEC/Big East tilt.
Date/Time: Friday, Dec. 2 7 p.m. (ET)
Venue: Carrier Dome, Syracuse, NY
Broadcast: ESPN
Gators at Orange lines by BetOnline.com
Point spread: Orange
Over/Under: OFF
Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. (ET) and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.
Florida comes into this game at 5-1 straight-up with the only setback being an 81-74 loss to No. 2 Ohio State as an 8.5-point road underdog. The Gators are 1-1 against the spread in games with posted lines and the total has gone ‘over’ in both games.
The combination of Kenny Boynton and Bradley Beal has done most of the damage so far for Florida with a combined 35.5 points and 8.8 rebounds a game. The Gators are averaging 90.8 points a game, while giving-up just 65.3 points a game.
Syracuse survived an early scare from Stanford in a 69-63 win as an 8.5-point favorite, but it remains perfect at 7-0 SU. The Orange are a profitable 5-1 against the spread and the total is 2-3-1 in its first six games with a posted line. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Kris Joseph leads the team in scoring with an average of 14.7 points and is second in rebounds with 5.7 a game.
Dion Waiters leads a trio of players that are averaging right around 11 points and C.J. Fair is the team’s leading rebounder with six a game. Defense has been the strong suit for Syracuse as it is holding teams to just 57 points a game.
The game comes down the Gators‘ high-powered offense verse the Orange’s shutdown defense. Stick with Syracuse to find a way to keep Boynton in check to get the win at home.
The Pick: Syracuse 72 vs. Florida 69
