Syracuse, N.Y. ― Judah Mintz dribbled the ball out near midcourt, letting the seconds tick off the clock.
The game between Syracuse and Miami was tied at 69-all. Syracuse had just come out of a timeout.
Mintz began to go to the basket with 7 seconds left, but he flared out to his right. Mintz jumped in the air and threw a cross-court pass to Quadir Copeland on the opposite wing.
Copeland drained the game-winning 3-pointer as the final horn sounded, giving the Orange a 72-69 win and sending the JMA Wireless Dome crowd into hysterics. The Syracuse players leapt from the bench and swarmed Copeland, who grabbed a cell phone and celebrated with fans.
Copeland’s 3-pointer capped a game that saw Syracuse constantly trying to overcome Miami, which led for most of the second half.
JJ Starling led Syracuse in scoring with 22 points. Mintz nearly had a triple-double with 10 points, eight rebounds and a career-high 13 assists.
Copeland’s game-winner was just his second made shot of the game. The sophomore finished with 11 points despite 2-for-9 field-goal shooting.
Syracuse improved to 13-5 overall and 4-3 in the ACC. Miami fell to 12-6 and 3-4.
Miami’s Bensley Joseph missed a mid-range jumper from the baseline with 25 seconds left and Syracuse’s Maliq Brown snared the rebound to give the Orange the ball with the scored tied, 69-69.
Miami played without starting center Norchad Omier, the Hurricanes’ leading scorer and rebounder on the season who was out with a lower-body injury.
Miami had the ball with the score tied in the final minute, but Joseph missed a mid-range jumper. Syracuse took a timeout with 18.6 seconds remaining to set up its final play.
In the second half, Syracuse stayed close and twice tied the game, but the Orange struggled to get over the hump and take the lead.
Starling scored seven-straight points and tied the game at 39 with a corner jumper. Miami guard Nijel Pack drained a 3-pointer, but a minute later Copeland tied the game again at 42 on a 1-for-2 trip to the foul line.
Pack then went on an 8-0 run himself, connecting on a pair of 3-pointers in the process. The Hurricanes pushed out to a 55-48 lead on Matthew Cleveland’s transition basket with about eight minutes remaining in the game.
Syracuse finally took the lead for the first time in the second half on a flurry of 3-pointers and then a huge tip-slam.
Chris Bell buried a pair of 3-pointers with one from Starling in between as Syracuse tied the game at 62-62.
Then Maliq Brown flew in to grab a missed shot by Mintz and rammed it back through the rim for a 64-62 lead with 3:19 remaining in the game. It was Syracuse’s first lead since 21-20 in the first half.
Wooga Poplar played just four minutes in the first half after drawing his second foul early in the contest. Kyshawn George, a 6-7 freshman, then went to the Miami bench with his second foul with 14 minutes remaining in the half. Both players spent the remainder of the half watching from the sideline.
Despite playing without so many key players, Miami took a 31-30 halftime lead. The Hurricanes hurt the Orange with dribble penetration. Syracuse couldn’t stop Miami players from getting to the basket.
The Hurricanes outscored Syracuse 24-to-8 in the paint, making up for a 1-for-9 from the 3-point arc in the first half.
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Stories by Mike Waters
- ACC basketball power rankings: How high does Syracuse climb after 2-0 week?
- Watch Quadir Copeland’s last-second 3-pointer in Syracuse’s win over Miami from every angle
- Inside the huddle for Syracuse basketball’s game-winner vs. Miami: ‘I said, if I get open, I’m going to shoot it’
- Syracuse basketball stuns Miami on Quadir Copeland’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer
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