Sophomore backcourt pair JJ Sterling (18 points) and judah mintz (14) combined for 32 of the Orange’s 60 points in the contest. 2nd year swingman Quadir Copeland He had 9 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals.center malik browna sophomore, grabbed a team-high eight rebounds and tied a career-high with five steals.
For the Yellow Jackets, senior guard Kyle Sturdivant (17 points), freshman forward Baye Ndongo (16 points), junior guard Myles Kelly (16 points) and sophomore forward Tafala Ngapare (10 points) Four players scored in double figures. Ndongo and Kelly had double-doubles with 11 and 10 rebounds, respectively.
When the battle is decided
The Orange led by one point, 59-58, with 2:11 remaining. Neither team had a chance to score until 31 seconds left, when Kelly came down the lane for a lay-in. Brown fouled off the shot and Kelly converted from the foul line for a three-point play, giving the home team four points. advantage. Mintz was fouled with 26 seconds left and both made from the charity stripe. Syracuse was unable to take the ball away from Georgia Tech, and the Yellow Jackets finished the game making 3 of 4 from the line.
Late half orange found juice
The Orange scored the first four points after intermission to tie the game at 34-34. With the score tied again at 36-36, Sturdivant scored eight points on a 12-2 Yellow Jacket rally to take a 48-38 lead with 11:57 left. The Orange were held to 1-of-10 (.100) from the field during the 7:03 run.
Syracuse bounced back and started shooting. Sterling and Copeland each had four in a 14-4 run that sealed the game at 52-52 for the visiting Orange with 6 minutes, 21 seconds left. From 10:58 to 5:50 left in the game, Syracuse was 7-of-10 from the field (.700). The Orange then slumped again, failing to make a field goal in the final 5:50 of the game.
Execution until the start of trading
Syracuse held Georgia Tech to just 1-of-9 (.111) through the first 5:55 of the game. Thanks to strong defense, the visiting Orange took a 9-2 lead 3:05 into the game. The points came on Mintz’s jumper, Sterling’s two 3-pointers and a free throw. A 9-3 rally gave Georgia Tech its first lead of the tournament, making it 17-16 with 10:34 left in the first half.
The Orange regained the lead and held it until Georgia Tech’s Ndongo scored with 6:48 left in the half to tie the game at 21-21. His basket started a 13-2 run for the Yellow Jackets and gave them a 32-23 advantage with 3:02 left before intermission. Ngapare contributed six points and Ndongo contributed four points in this run. The Orange fought back with a classic 3-point play from Sterling and two driving layups from Mintz, cutting the deficit to two points with 1:13 left in the first half. Gaparet made a come-from-behind jumper for the final field goal of the first half, and the teams went into intermission with Georgia Tech leading 34-30.
Remarkable numbers
- Mintz scored 14 points today and is four points away from reaching 1,000 career points.
- The Orange had nine steals in the first half and 12 in a contest for 13 steals.th Steal at least 10 bases in a game this season.
- Syracuse forced 17 turnovers and has forced double-digit turnovers in every game this season.
- Georgia Tech won the rebound battle, grabbing 49 boards to Syracuse’s 28.
- The all-time series between Syracuse and Georgia Tech is tied at 9 wins and 9 losses.
next
Syracuse will remain on the road and travel to Raleigh, North Carolina, for Game 2 of a home-and-home series against North Carolina State on February 20th. Tipov is set for 7 p.m., and the game will be televised on ESPN2.
ticket
Syracuse men’s basketball tickets can be purchased online at cuse.com/tickets, by phone at 1-888-DOMETIX, and at the Dome Box Office (Gate B).
To learn more about Syracuse men’s basketball, follow the team on Twitter (@Cuse_MBB) and Instagram (@cuse_mbb).