Judah Mintz’s Career Night Leads to Syracuse Victory Over LSU

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Following a disappointing Maui Invitational Challenge, Syracuse bounced back in a big way against LSU in the inaugural ACC/SEC Challenge.

The Orange dominated in the second half to beat the Tigers 80-57.

Sophomore guard Judah Mintz was the star of the show, scoring a career high 33 points in the win, to go along with five rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Mintz’s previous career high was 26 points earlier this year against Canisius. 

Although the game was close in the first half, the momentum shifted after a thunderous poster dunk by Mintz over LSU forward Mwani Wilkinson.

Judah Mintz goes up for a shot in the paint against Tyrell Ward, where Mintz creates shots for himself and his teammates during Tuesday’s game. Photos by Patricia Duong.

After leading by five at intermission, Mintz proceeded to score 12 straight points for the Orange. He was shifty all night long, going to the free throw line 15 times. That was more than the entire LSU team.

“I think it’s just difficult to keep me out of the paint,” Mintz said. “I mean just being consistent and attacking every single time makes it difficult on the defense. I think most players don’t play like that and I think that’s why I’m able to get to the free throw line.”

Comparing Judah Mintz to Barry Sanders, Syracuse head coach Adrian Autry praised Mintz’s offensive craftiness and his ability to change direction on a dime. Mintz scored the most points at the JMA Wireless Dome since Tyus Battle put up 34 points against Wake Forest in 2018.

“He really kept us in the first half, getting to the foul line, staying attacking, staying aggressive,” Autry said. “I thought defensively today, he didn’t gamble, he kept people in front and when he does that he sets the tone for our defense.”

Syracuse’s defense and three point shooting contributed immensely to the victory. Holding LSU to 2-22 from three-point range, the Orange caught fire from behind the arc, in part to Chris Bell.

Chris Bell shoots an open jumper against LSU, as after starting 1-6 from the field in the first half, Bell gets into a rhythm and makes six of his last nine attempts.

The sophomore forward scored 20 points and was 6-10 from downtown. A quiet first half, Bell made three straight threes in the second, and believes his defense played a huge role in getting open shots.

“I feel like if I made it hard for them on defense, which I always do, then they still gotta come back on the offensive end and guard me,” Bell said. “So it’s going to be a long night for them, and it’s always a long night for me.”

For the Tigers, forward Jalen Reed had a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds while guard Jordan Wright had 15 points and seven rebounds. 

Guard Justin Taylor and center Naheem McLeod contest a shot from forward Will Baker, as the Orange’s physical team defense holds the Tiger’s leading scorer to three points.

Coach Autry believes this is the Orange’s “best game of the year” so far, due to a complete team effort on both sides of the ball.

“I think we’re a really good defensive team,” Autry said. “We have speed, we have quickness, we can change, we can switch when we want to, we try not to, but I think our defense has something to do with [LSU’s turnovers]. Picking them up, chasing them hard off screens, making every catch pretty hard and contesting shots.”

Syracuse head coach Adrian Autry standing on the sideline during the game. The Orange had 16 assists on 25 made field-goals in the victory.

Speaking on the second unit, Autry was pleased with the energy guys like Quadir Copeland, Maliq Brown, and Benny Williams brought to the game.

“I think everybody that came into the game gave us some contributions. I thought Quadir Copeland, even though his statline wasn’t as big, but I thought he had a really good impact on the game,” Autry said. “Overall, this was the best team victory we’ve had so far this year.” 

Moving to 5-2, Syracuse will play Virginia on the road Saturday, in its first conference matchup of the season. Tip off is set for 12 p.m.