Syracuse men’s basketball (12-6, 5-2 ACC) took down Notre Dame (9-9, 1-6 ACC) 78-73 on Saturday night in the JMA Wireless Dome.
The Orange entered the game coming off of a big time 82-72 victory over Virginia Tech. What SU did right in that game was shooting the ball well from beyond the arc and forcing the Hokies to take tough shots. The Orange had a tough time against Notre Dame when they played in South Bend, and this one was a nail biter as well.
Notre Dame shot 46% from the field and 41% from beyond the arc, which on looks good on paper. However, SU forced Notre Dame to shoot 37 times from the three-point line.
The Orange on the other hand shot 52% from the field and 8 of 19 from deep. For Syracuse, it was Chris Bell who led the offense against the Fighting Irish. Bell finished the game with a season high 17 points and added 3 rebounds as well. He also shot 5-of-8 from 3 point land.
“Chris looked good, he really looked like he was feeling it tonight,” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said about SU forward Chris Bell.
The freshman played his best game of the year, but it was an overall team win. SU out rebounded Notre Dame on offense and defense and had 16 more points in the paint than the Fighting Irish.
On the other hand, Jesse Edwards shooting and scoring ability was on full display against the Fighting Irish. The Dutchman finished the game with 13 points and 15 rebounds. This was Edwards’s eighth double-double of the season. Edwards presence was particularly felt in the paint and on defense. The big man added four blocks onto his already impressive performance.
“Jesse made a couple of really good plays tonight to both their shooters,” Boeheim said about his starting center.
LISTEN: Jesse Edwards helped the Orange jump out to an early lead, and he used his height to do it. @EzeirCameron had the call.
— WAER Sports (@WAERSports) January 15, 2023
🎙️ @waer883, https://t.co/BG0Q3sGq3P pic.twitter.com/nSeosAoTw1
Senior leaders Joe Girard III and Jesse Edwards did their fair share tonight, but it was the young freshman talent that helped the Orange down the stretch. Maliq Brown, Judah Mintz, and Chris Bell combined for 46 of SU ‘s 78 total points.
Notre Dame had 4 players score in double digits, but it wasn’t enough. One of them was Graduate guard Marcus Hammond who had a season high 18 points on only 23 minutes played.
Syracuse’s next game is on the road against No. 16 Miami on Monday January 16th at 7:00 p.m. WAER's coverage begins with McClurg Team Countdown to Tipoff at 6:30.