Mustangs surge on a two-game win streak, with multiple players hitting double figures and high-impact performances, aiming to clinch vital ACC seeding.
SMU basketball has started to look like a team nobody wants to see in March, and the Mustangs get another chance to prove it Saturday when they travel to Syracuse for a 1 p.m. CT tip at JMA Wireless Arena on The CW.
Andy Enfield’s group enters at 17-7 overall and 6-5 in the ACC, riding a two-game surge that featured an 86-67 road win at Pitt and Tuesday’s 89-81 takedown of Notre Dame.
In that Notre Dame win, Jaron Pierre Jr. stuffed the box score with 22 points, eight rebounds and a season-high six assists while surpassing 2,000 career points (now at 2,013). Boopie Miller added 20 points and seven assists, and Samet Yigitoglu posted his sixth double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 boards as SMU shot 52.5. percent from the floor.
SMU has five players averaging double figures: Miller (19.2 points, 6.8 assists), Pierre (17.7), B.J. Edwards (13.3), Corey Washington (11.3) and Yigitoglu (10.7).
The Mustangs have had at least four players score 10-plus in 22 of 24 games, and they’re 7-0 when five guys hit double digits.
Miller has been the motor, pairing 19.2 points with an elite 2.64 assist-to-turnover ratio while shooting 41.0 percent from three and 86.8 percent at the line.
Edwards has been the chaos creator, averaging 2.5 steals (best in the ACC) and becoming one of only two players in the nation with multiple triple-doubles this season. Yigitoglu anchors the paint with 8.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.
SMU is No. 34 in the NET, and every road opportunity matters.
The Mustangs beat Syracuse twice last season, including a 73-53 ACC Tournament win, but winning in the Dome is its own test. If SMU brings its pace, passing and shot-making with it, this weekend could be another statement boost.