44 Reserve Points Help Orange Sail By Ducks

Sunday, December 17

Sioux Falls, S.D.

1:00 p.m.

Syracuse University

8-3,0-1ACC

Oregon

7-3,0-0Pac-12

Syracuse

Oregon

12/17/2023 3:08:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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The Orange had four reserve players score eight or more points, including a career-best 15 points from sophomore forward Quadir Copeland, as Syracuse (8-3) was victorious against Oregon (7-3), 83-63, in Sioux Falls, S.D. on Sunday afternoon. Copeland also contributed nine rebounds, five assists, one block and one steal.

Copeland (15 points), sophomore center Maliq Brown (13), sophomore guard Kyle Cuffe Jr. (8) and junior forward Benny Williams (8) were the performers who scored eight or more off the bench. Sophomore backcourt pairing Judah Mintz and J.J. Starling scored 18 and 14 points, respectively. Mintz had an 8-of-11 performance from the foul line.

WHEN THE GAME WAS DECIDED
After taking a slight lead at 21-20 with 6:18 in the first half, Syracuse stretched its lead to seven after junior center Naheem McLeod and Copeland made both of their chances from the foul line, and Starling made a 3-pointer and layup to make the score 30-23 with 2:24 before the intermission. The Orange would keep their lead for the rest of the affair, extending it as far as 24 points after Starling made one from long range with 2:29 left in the game.

DEFENSIVE STRENGTH
The Orange showed one of their best defensive performances of the season, holding their opponents to 22-of-61 (.361 percent) in field goals and 4-of-27 (.148 percent) from 3-point range. Syracuse tied its best mark of the season with 19 forced turnovers, scoring 23 points off turnovers. The rebound margin was 36-31 in favor of the Orange, with a 29-19 difference in defensive rebounds.

FROM COLD TO HOT
Syracuse found difficulties making shots in the first nine minutes, going 1-of-11 from the field and zero-of-five from three. After that mark, the Orange made six-of-seven field goals and three-of-four 3-pointers. Oregon went 2-of-15 from 3-point range in the first half. At the 10-minute mark, Oregon had eight points off Syracuse turnovers. After that point, the Orange created 10 points off turnovers while the Ducks had four.

Oregon scored the first four points of the contest, and the Orange missed their first six shots from the field. After Naheem McLeod made one-of-two from the foul line, neither team made a basket for 2:28 until Judah Mintz broke the cold streak with an alley-oop dunk from sophomore forward Chris Bell. With 15:09 to go, Oregon's top scorer Jackson Shelstad made one from beyond the arc for its first points in a four-minute span. That bucket began a 7-1 scoring run for the Ducks, taking a 14-4 advantage.

Syracuse responded with eight unanswered points, including a free throw from Mintz, layups from Brown and Williams, and a 3-pointer from Cuffe. The run cut into the Oregon lead, trailing 14-12 with 10:27 before halftime. After an Oregon free throw, Kyle Cuffe Jr. slammed one from Benny Williams and drained one from beyond the arc to extend Syracuse's run to 13-1. The run allowed the first Orange lead, 17-15, with 8:53 remaining in the first half. After a Mintz steal turned into a Williams dunk, the Orange took a 21-20 edge. The teams traded dunks in the final minutes of the first half, with the latter being a Williams slam off a Mintz toss-up. The squads went into the locker rooms with Syracuse ahead, 33-25.

THE ORANGE CONTINUE TO THRIVE
The Orange scored the first points after the break with a Justin Taylor 3-pointer. The Ducks answered with a jumper from Kwame Evans Jr. and layup from Brennan Rigsby to cut the Syracuse lead to seven, 36-29. Mintz scored the next four points, making a layup and two foul shots, increasing the Orange's advantage to double digits, 40-29. The teams traded points from the field and at the foul line, with the Syracuse lead varying from eight to 12 points. A Quadir Copeland dunk from Mintz's pass brought the Orange lead to 13 with 13:21 to go, 49-36. Mintz gave Syracuse its largest lead of the contest, 51-37, after a bucket in the paint with 12:36 to go. After an Oregon layup from Jadrain Tracey, Mintz scored two more field goals and Maliq Brown stole it and slammed it to build upon the Orange lead, 57-41.

An 11-3 run that began with nine minutes left put the game out of reach for Oregon, bringing the score to 70-47 with 5:49 left to play. The rally was powered by slams from Williams and Brown, two layups and one free throw from Copeland, and two made foul shots from Mintz. The Orange squad finished the rest of the game making 5-of-7 from the field.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

The Orange scored 50 points in the paint compared to the Ducks' 28.
The Orange forced nine of their 19 turnovers in the 10 minutes before halftime.
Mintz ranked second in Division I in free throws attempted and fourth in free throws made before this weekend. He had an 8-of-11 performance from the line today.
Syracuse made 18-of-25 (.720 percent) free throws in the contest.
Oregon's Kwame Evans Jr. and Jackson Shelstad scored 17 and 16 points, respectively.

UP NEXT
Syracuse returns home for the first time in over two weeks to face Niagara on December 21 in the JMA Wireless Dome. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. and the game will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra.

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: (12-17-2023) Syracuse vs Oregon