Syracuse Holds off Pitt for First ACC Win

SYRACUSE, N.Y.- The Syracuse Men’s Basketball team overcame an eight-point halftime deficit to beat Pittsburgh 81-73 inside the JMA Wireless Dome Saturday afternoon. SU now sits 10-3 on the season and 1-1 in conference play following the victory over Pitt, snapping a three-game losing skid against the Panthers.

Syracuse outscored Pitt’s bench 52-17, the highest total for Orange reserves in a game since the 2016 season. Quadir Copeland continued to fill up the stat sheet, tallying a career-high 22 points in 24 minutes of action. The sophomore guard netted 16 points in the second half, largely due to 14 free throw attempts in the final frame. Copeland also had nine rebounds, four assists, and three steals for the Orange.

“I know it was a good scoring game for me today, but no matter how I’m playing I know I could change the game in different type of ways. I can go get a block, get you 10 rebounds, get somebody else involved, and maybe get you 10 assists some days. I feel like I just play with so much energy and passion because, at the end of the day, I feel like that’s my job,” Copeland said.

Copeland’s role has progressed over the last month as the first option off the bench. Head coach Red Autry joked about the Philadelphia product’s decision-making at points during the game but recognized how impactful Copeland has been for Syracuse.

“He’s still just scratching the surface. What I love about Quadir is no matter what mistakes are made he still gives you everything. He fights, and I think every coach wants that. I know that he will make mistakes, but that guy can play for me,” Autry said.

Coach Autry also complimented the play of forwards Benny Williams and Maliq Brown for Syracuse in a reserve role. Williams has had a limited role in six appearances, averaging under four points and 2.5 rebounds this season. Williams played increased confidence, scoring a season-high 15 points and seven rebounds. Brown also finished with 15 points for the second straight game, shooting 70 percent from the field in 31 minutes.

Since their loss to Virginia, the Orange bench has outscored opponents 170-97. In SU’s first five wins, they only outscored their opponents twice versus New Hampshire and Chaminade. Coach Autry expects this new formula to remain consistent for the remainder of the season.

“We don’t rely on just five guys, we rely on eight, nine, ten guys. This is how this team is built, this is how we practice and it’s how we will play in games…Obviously, Judah [Mintz] is our leader make no mistake about that. He kinda makes us go, but all these other guys come in, and they just want to contribute. That’s what the talk about is going this together,” Autry said.

Due to more consistent scoring from other players in the rotation, it eases some of the pressure off the shoulders of primary scorers like Mintz to not stress about having to score 30 points every game for a chance to win. With added defensive prowess now needed for other Syracuse players, it will only make things easier for Mintz.

“I feel like our bench is what separates us from the rest of our league. If the starting five isn’t doing its part, we have guys that come in the game and raise the intensity. Having guys like Benny, Maliq, Quadir, and Kyle [Cuffe Jr.] to come in and give us minutes in makes us special,” Mintz said.

Mintz didn’t have his best performance against the Panthers adding 12 points shooting 4-10 from the field and 3-5 on his free throws. Syracuse struggled from three going 3-17 from beyond the arc, but still managed to score over 80 with 42 points in the paint.

Energized by a crowd of 20,642, Cuse shot 52 percent (15-29) and outrebounded Pitt 25-17 in the second half. An early 14-2 run made it a 44-43 Syracuse lead with nearly 14 minutes remaining after Mintz made both attempts from the charity stripe. Both teams traded buckets before SU regained the lead on a Brown dunk at the 4:45 mark and never looked back.

A Copeland’s free throw stretched the lead to 11 with 90 seconds left before Pitt’s Jaland Lowe’s transition three made it a six-point game. After turning the ball over on the press, Copeland secured a rebound and iced the game at the line.

Pitt’s Carlton Carrington led the Panthers with 17 points, seven boards, and five assists. Senior Blake Hinson was third in the ACC coming into the game averaging over 20 points per game but finished with 11 (3-12/1-7/4-7) on a poor shooting night.

“Blake had open looks in the second half, but just missed shots. Syracuse is a good defensive team with great length and athleticism and they were more physical than us,” Pittsburgh head coach Jeff Chapel said.

Syracuse finished 2023 on a high note, but more difficult matchups are on the horizon. They’ll head down to Durham to face off against No. 16 Duke on Tuesday at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Tip-off is scheduled for 9 p.m. on ESPN.