Syracuse used a 24-7 run over eight minutes and change in the second half to take control and eventually defeat Monmouth at home, 86-71. Prior to that, the Orange (7-4) struggled with the Hawks (1-10), never taking a lead of greater than a half dozen. SU did a lot of work at the charity stripe in that span, knocking down 13 fouls shots to take a 72-56 lead with 7:23 to play.
After a lackadaisical defensive effort early in the game, Syracuse put the clamps on during the deciding run, allowing Monmouth to make just 2-of-12 shots from the field.
Aside from that cold snap, the Hawks shot 56.8 percent from the field. The Orange, meanwhile, shot 50.9 percent from the floor, including making 53.3 percent (8-of-15) from three-point range, and knocked down 22 free throws in 28 attempts.
A little over three minutes into the action, SU posted their first run of the contest, outscoring the guests by a 12-2 margin over five-and-a-half minutes. The burst gave Syracuse a 17-12 lead less than nine minutes into the game.
The two squads traded scores for the next four minutes, then Monmouth ran off eight straight points to start an 11-2 run for a 32-28 edge with less than six minutes until halftime. The Hawks would nudge that lead out to five points twice, but the Orange got eight straight points, including back-to-back threes from Joe Girard III and Chris Bell, to go in front and take an eventual 42-40 lead at the break.
Another Girard triple less than two minutes into the second half pushed the SU lead to six, but the Hawks ran off seven straight points to take the slimmest of leads once more. After the teams traded three-point possessions, Syracuse dropped the hammer with the decisive run. Judah Mintz was the driving force, piling up a dozen points in the burst, including a floater in the paint to cap things off with the Orange holding a 72-56 lead.
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Monmouth would get no closer than a dozen the rest of the way.
Mintz’s 11-for-12 effort at the foul line keyed his game-high 24-point effort and tacked on four steals. Girard connected four times from behind the arc to account for most of his 16 points, 13 coming before the break. Benny Williams had 11 of his 13 points in the second half while Jesse Edwards filled the stat sheet with 12 points, ten rebounds, four steals, and three blocks. Maliq Brown added 11 points and seven boards off the bench.
Jack Collins hit five threes for Monmouth, piling up 16 of his 20 points in the opening half. Myles Foster added 17 points while Myles Ruth had 11 points and Tahron Allen chipped in with nine.
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