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Nijel Pack had been bullied by Joe Girard III for most of the game, routinely pressed up against the Syracuse guard before he leaned into him for a three-point play. But with four minutes left in the second half, Pack had plenty of room steps behind the 3-point line, his feet nestled on top of the “U” logo.  

Pack faked a pass, causing Girard and Judah Mintz to fall back even more, before rising up and nailing the deep 3. Then, Mintz drove inside and turned it over. Pack took the ball back, the ball landing in the hands of Pack again. He took a few steps before heaving the ball down court from Syracuse’s 3-point line, finding Harlond Beverly for the transition slam.

Pack’s 3-pointer gave Miami its first lead of the second half while Mintz’s turnover foreshadowed what would happen in the final few minutes of regulation. With 1:43 on the clock, Mintz tried to move the Orange too fast in transition and threw the ball to Beverly instead of one of his teammates. And out of a Syracuse timeout in the final minute, Mintz was stuffed going into the lane, allowing Norchad Omier to make it a two-possession game.

“Judah has played really well all year,” head coach Jim Boeheim said. “He just had a bad game, that’s what happens with freshmen.” 

Miami (15-3, 6-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) came back to defeat Syracuse (12-7, 5-3) 82-78, maintaining a perfect home record this season. The Orange led by as much as 11 with Jesse Edwards scoring a career-high 25 points. Girard also added 21, but it wouldn’t be enough to give SU a much-needed Quadrant 1 win on the road. 

Miami grasped a hold of the game immediately, responding to Syracuse’s first basket with a 9-0 run by the Under-16 timeout. Boeheim took Benny Williams out for Maliq Brown before the end of Miami’s run, but he quickly plugged in Symir Torrence and Mounir Hima for Girard and Edwards with 14 minutes left in the first half. 

The decision, meant to help SU defensively, proved helpful as Hima rose for emphatic slam just seconds after checking in. On the ensuing possession, Torrence collected a rebound on the left side of the court, took a few steps and lofted the ball to Brown from behind the half-court line for an easy finish. 

Williams came back into the game with 10 minutes left, knocking down a 3-pointer from the right wing before throwing the ball over two defenders for Edwards to finish inside. Boeheim said Williams “loosened up” and knocked down some shots throughout the night — he finished with 12 points, nailing two 3-pointers on three attempts. 

But more importantly, Syracuse went on its own 9-0 run, taking a 29-24 with 4:40 left in the period. 

The streak started with a goaltending call on an Edwards layup before Justin Taylor poked the ball out of Miami’s possession near the free-throw line. He found Mintz in transition, who was fouled as he maneuvered to the right side of the basket and laid it in off the glass. 

Williams got the ball back for SU after a missed jumper from Beverly, allowing Taylor to position himself at the right wing. Mintz quickly found him for the deep shot and Taylor’s 3-pointer gave SU its first lead of the night.

Girard then worked alone for the Orange’s final two points of the run, muscling his way to the left block and leaning into Pack before throwing the ball off the glass. It fell through and Girard connected at the free-throw line, mimicking the same exact play on Bensley Joseph in the final minute of the half, cocking his head back as the ball fell through the net. 

SU picked up where it left off in the second half with Mintz lobbing the ball to Jesse Edwards on a set play. Mintz dished it to Williams on the next possession, who drilled a 3 from the top of the key as a defender closed out on him. 

Girard returned to his aggressive play in the second half, this time on the right side. He got to a similar spot, but realized Edwards had enough space on his own to finish with a hook shot in the middle of the paint. 

Less than a minute later, Girard leaned into Pack again, sending him sliding onto the floor. Girard kept the ball in his hand, almost expecting a whistle, but it never came as he drained a jumper from the left elbow.   

“Joe and Jesse really were good, they did everything you could do to try and win this game,” Boeheim said. 

Girard also continued to use the aggressive play which worked earlier on Pack, finding Edwards before his elbow jumper gave Syracuse a 11-point lead. Edwards dunked again off a high pass from Mintz, slamming it down another time with enough space to get into the lane before rising with his right hand. 

Girard started to get cold, making Edwards even more vital as an offensive option. The Orange continued to free him up with pick-and-rolls, and he made an impact on the offensive glass when he put back a jumper that was too strong from Williams. Edwards sprinted down the lane a few minutes later before Mintz aired the ball high again. He grabbed it, faked a shot and then laid it in to tie a career-high 22 points. 

But the Hurricanes stayed close enough with Isaiah Wong scoring his first points of the game off a transition 3 before Omier delivered an emphatic dunk. The Hurricanes got within six points of Syracuse’s lead after Omier’ dunk, and worked back to within three when Omier finished off a three-point play. 

Miami took the lead with Pack’s 3-pointer before Taylor nailed a contested triple of his own to put SU back on top. But the Hurricanes took back the lead, honing in on the offensive glass by getting in position against Edwards. 

“That was the difference, we just couldn’t get a rebound,” Boeheim said about the second half. 

With less than three minutes left, Jordan Miller drove down the left side, missing on a floater from near the top of the key. But Miller continued to run inside while Edwards headed directly under the basket. The ball flew over Edwards, allowing Miller to take control before securing the chance at a three-point play on a lefty layup.

Published on January 16, 2023 at 9:28 pm

Contact Anish: asvasude@syr.edu | @anish_vasu