NC State @ Syracuse preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 13, 2019 ) Syracuse 58, NC State 73

Two teams coming off much-needed wins square off Tuesday when Syracuse hosts North Carolina State in ACC action. The Orange snapped a two-game skid with a two-point win over Wake Forest in their last contest, while the Wolfpack avoided a fourth straight loss by topping Miami.

This is the second game of a three-game road trip for N.C. State, which won by 11 at Miami on last Wednesday as C.J. Bryce scored 22 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. The Wolfpack led by as many as 18 points in the second half before the Hurricanes twice whittled it down to three, only to watch N.C. State survive down the stretch. "We had some adversity and we fought through it," coach Kevin Keatts said. "When they cut the lead to three, we found out a lot about our team. These guys got a lot of fight in them." Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim also was thrilled with his team's will to win, saying after the comeback win over Wake Forest: "The fight at the end - the last four minutes - was amazing."

TIME: 7 p.m. ET. TV: ESPN2

ABOUT NORTH CAROLINA STATE (15-8, 6-6 ACC): It has been a strange couple of weeks for Bryce, who went scoreless in back-to-back games against Georgia Tech and North Carolina - both losses - before bouncing back to average 18.5 points in games against Louisville and Miami. He leads the team in scoring at 13.7 points, although Markell Johnson (13.2), DJ Funderburk (12.5) and Devon Daniels (11.5) aren't far behind. Johnson had 19 points and 12 assists against the Hurricanes and has recorded at least four assists in 15 consecutive games.

ABOUT SYRACUSE (14-9, 7-5): Down the stretch against Wake Forest, Syracuse played without starting big men Marek Dolezaj and Bourama Sidibe and reserve forward Quincy Guerrier - all of whom had fouled out. After Buddy Boeheim scored 23 points, Elijah Hughes added 20 and seldom-used freshman Brycen Goodine made the go-ahead bucket in the final seconds, coach Boeheim was thrilled about his team moving into a fourth-place tie in the ACC standings. "Amazing win," Boeheim said. "To be down four and those guys out of the game, our probability (of winning) wasn’t very good at that stage.”

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Daniels has scored in double figures in six of his last seven games and matched his season high with three 3-pointers against Miami.

2. The Wolfpack won last year's meeting by 15 points, holding Boeheim and Hughes to a combined 3-of-16 shooting effort.

3. Hughes has played every minute in six straight games.

PREDICTION: North Carolina State 74, Syracuse 67