Brown vs. Syracuse: Live stream info, game preview, picks and predictions & more

There is exactly one (1) Division I college basketball game scheduled for the Monday after Christmas, and it pits the Brown Bears against the Syracuse Orange live on the internet and at the Carrier Dome that ‘Cuse is desperately trying to not call the Carrier Dome anymore. Don’t sign away lifetime naming rights for a song, friends. This game was added late due to both teams needing games thanks to the Covid-19 affected schedules across college basketball.

Brown (8-5) hasn’t played a game since a 70-65 loss vs. Vermont at home on December 10th. Freshman Kino Lilly Jr. leads the Bears at 12.4 PPG, and while they struggle to score, they can get stops. They’re at 97.7 points allowed per 100 possessions in adjusted efficiency, which means they’ll have a chance in the Ivy this season.

But can they take advantage of the massive weakness in Syracuse’s game, which is that they might be the worst team in America in defending the three-point shot. 51.2% the shots taken against the Orange are three-pointers, which is the most of any team in America because they are so wide open at all times. There’s no joke about a 2-3 zone you can make that the Orange haven’t heard before, but it seems to be hurting this season far more than most. They are 173rd in the country in adjusted defense, and 43.5% of the points against them come from downtown.

How to watch Brown vs. Syracuse

When: Monday, December 27, 6 p.m. ET
Where: Carrier Dome, Syracuse, NY
TV: ACC Network
Where to live stream online: WatchESPN
Live updates and stats: At DraftKings Sportsbook

Odds

Spread: Syracuse -9.5
Total: 143.5

The Pick

Brown +9.5

It’s been 16 days since the Orange stepped on the court as well, but can that defense truly be solved with practices limited by Covid-19 across the team? Buddy Boeheim said he and three starters got Covid last week, and that’s why we’re even playing this in the first place. We’ll lay the points here if we must, but again as so much in this season of Covid, this is a really tough spot to make a choice.

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