Syracuse rallies, but fails to complete comeback in ACC opener against Clemson, 64-61

Donnie Freeman led an Orange rally in the second half, but the comeback fell short in the final minute

Dec 31, 2025; Syracuse, New York, USA; Syracuse Orange forward Donnie Freeman (1) blocks the shot of Clemson Tigers center Carter Welling (22) during the first half at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-Imagn Images | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Syracuse rallied back from a ten-point second half deficit, but could never draw even and suffered a 64-61 home loss to Clemson in the opening ACC contest for both teams.  Donnie Freeman scored all 18 of his points in the final dozen minutes to try to rally the Orange (9-5), but they never caught the Tigers (11-3).

SU struggled to score consistently, shooting 40.0 percent from the field in the game, including just 33.3 percent in the first half.  The team had three stretches of three consecutive made shots, but also went through droughts of three, four, and six attempts in the game.

Clemson used their advantage in bulk in the game, shooting 57.5 percent from inside the 3-point arc.  That enabled the Tigers to overcome a rough effort from long range (4-of-16) and the foul line (6-of-12).

The guests jumped out to an early first half lead, but Syracuse walked them down

Clemson took an early advantage by striking for ten straight points for a 12-3 lead before the first media timeout of the game.  Tyler Betsey came off the bench to score six points for most of the offense in an 8-2 run for the Orange to get back within 14-11.

The Tigers stretched their lead back out to eight at 23-15 with just over eight minutes left in the half, but SU responded with their best sustained offense of the half.  Nate Kingz and Naithan George used 3-pointers to sandwich an Akir Souare three-point-play for nine straight to push Syracuse in front.  Neither team led by more than a single point the remainder of the half with Clemson holding a 29-28 lead at the half.

Just as they did in the opening half, the Tigers had a quick start in the second half.  After J.J. Starling scored a quick layup to get things going for the Orange, but the guests responded with a 14-3 run to retake their double figure lead at 43-33 a little over six minutes after the game resumed.

SU halved that lead in about two-and-a-half minutes, but struggled to get any closer than four after that.  With under six minutes remaining, Dillon Hunter went on a personal 8-3 run to give Clemson a 59-50 lead with under three-and-a-half minutes remaining.

Freeman took over in the closing miuntes for SU

Donnie Freeman turned into the leading man for Syracuse at that point, shaking off a slow start to score all the points in a 7-2 run and ten straight Orange points overall.  The burst pulled the hosts back within 61-57 with a little under four minutes to play.

Freeman continued to be a source of offense, dropping in a layup to make it a 63-61 game with 42.1 seconds to play.  Carter Welling made one-of-two foul shots with 14.9 seconds remaining to stretch the Tiger lead to three.  

Freeman could not connect on a 3-pointer and Clemson secured the loose ball rebound, then ran the clock down to 0.2 seconds before a foul.  After a missed foul shot, the clock expired and the win belonged to the Tigers.

Freeman paced all players with 18 points and nine rebounds on the day.  George was the only other SU player in double figures, finishing with ten.  Betsey had eight points, all in the first half, and Kiyan Anthony seven.

R.J. Godfrey topped Clemson with 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the floor.  Hunter added ten points while Jestin Porter chipped in with nine and Ace Buckner eight.

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