Expectations were high for Donnie Freeman in his second season. He was the only Syracuse player selected to pre-season All-ACC teams and while his season started off well, Freeman has returned from injury
with a bit more fire and intensity.
Against Clemson, it took 28 minutes for Freeman to get on the scoreboard, but in the final 12 minutes he scored 18 points and was a final shot from dragging the Orange to overtime. The shot missed and the anguished showed on Freeman as he left the court.
Last night, he came out to prove that the last-second miss wasn’t going to linger on his mind. Against Georgia Tech, Donnie erupted for a career-high 27 points in 34 minutes. He was 9-18 from the field, 2-4 from 3 and 7-11 from the foul line. He added 9 rebounds,3 blocks and above all when Syracuse was searching for some points to secure the win, Freeman wanted the ball.
Now, he didn’t get it enough in that stretch (which is a topic for another time), but he showed something that was lacking last season in tight games, an alpha mentality. One of the complaints about Freeman was that he was often content to hang on the perimeter instead of using his size and skill to get to the rim. Over the last two games, Freeman is 13-19 from the foul line and if he can continue to attack the basket, he’ll get more ACC teams in foul trouble like he did the Yellow Jackets.
In the last 50+ minutes of action, Freeman has shown that he can make the outside shot, but he’s also going to get aggressive. With the lead cut to 6 and the Orange desperate for a basket, Freeman caught the ball at the top of the key and drove past Baye Ndongo for an emphatic dunk that helped ice the game. It’s a play that I’m not sure Freeman makes last year, but this year he’s playing with more confidence, more emotion and it’s what Syracuse is going to need the rest of the way.
