Girard Guides Orange Past Big Red

Saturday, December 17

Syracuse, N.Y.

3 PM

Syracuse University

8-4,1-0ACC

Cornell

7-3,0-0Ivy League

Cornell

Syracuse

12/17/2022 5:08:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Highlights Press Conference Chris Bell Interview Benny Williams Interview Photo Gallery

A 19-point outing from Joseph Girard III topped five players in double digits and sent Syracuse (8-4) to a 78-63 victory versus longtime in-state foe Cornell (7-3).

Syracuse extended its win streak to five games and finished off the non-conference portion of its schedule.

Jesse Edward logged his sixth double-double of the season by contributing 11 points and 12 rebounds. Judah Mintz (14 points), Chris Bell (13), and Benny Williams (12) completed the Orange performers who finished with 10-or-more points.

WHEN THE GAME WAS DECIDED
After trailing for the first 19:51 of the opening half and heading to the intermission even at 37-37, the Orange jumped in front after the break.Bell scored in the lane and Girard converted two free throws to push Syracuse ahead, 41-37. The lead ballooned as high as 20 points in the second half and the Orange never trailed again.

CORNELL 3-POINTERS CREATE EARLY MARGIN
The visiting Big Red opened the game's scoring on a 3-pointer from Nazir Williams and before long added threes from Isaiah Gray and Greg Dolan to move ahead, 11-4. Another 3-pointer from Keller Boothby, combined with Chris Manon's basket in the lane, provided the visitors with their largest lead at 11 points, 25-14, with 8:47 left in the first half.

GIRARD KEYS 'CUSE RESPONSE
Girard helped the Orange get back into the fray by sandwiching a basket and 3-pointer around a layin by Maliq Brown off a Girard assist. The Orange trailed, 25-21 after the seven straight points.

Williams converted his second 3-pointer of the half with 3:46 remaining, and Cornell was up nine, 32-23. Mintz scored five straight points but Gray answered with a 3-pointer. Girard stepped again, hitting two free throws and a 3-pointer, and Bell added a 3-pointer and one free throw to knot the score at 37-37.

ORANGE STEP UP
Over the first 10 minutes after the break, SU held the visiting Cornell squad to just 3-of-19 (.158) from the field. At the other end, a dunk by Williams started the Orange 12-0 scoring spurt, which featured four points from Mintz. The run gave Syracuse a 57-43 advantage with 11:52 left in the contest. The Orange remained in control the rest of the way.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

Syracuse extended its win streak against Cornell to 42 and the all-time series record to 96-31.
Girard (1,308) shuffled past Tony Bruin (1,294) into the 39th spot on the Syracuse career scoring list.
Cornell's 48 three-point attempts represented the second-most by a Syracuse opponent. Villanova owns the mark after 50 3-point attempts in a December 2021 matchup.
Nazir Williams led Cornell with 12 points.
Syracuse had a commanding 38-22 advantage in points in the paint.

UP NEXT
Syracuse returns to ACC play on Tuesday, Dec. 20, as the squad welcomes Pitt to the JMA Wireless Dome. Tip-off is slated for 9:00 p.m. and the contest will air live on ESPNU.

TICKETS
Syracuse men's basketball tickets are available online (cuse.com/tickets), by phone (1-888-DOMETIX), and at the Dome Box Office (Gate B).

For complete coverage of Syracuse men's basketball, follow the team on Twitter (@Cuse_MBB) and Instagram (@cuse_mbb).

Gallery: (12-17-2022) Syracuse vs. Cornell