March 10, 2026; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Syracuse Orange forward William Kyle III (42) and Southern Methodist University Mustangs center Jayden Toombs (10) battle for the ball in the first half at the Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images CHARLOTE — Boopie Miller scored 25 points and Jaron Pierre Jr. poured in 21 as SMU pulled away from Syracuse in the second half for an 86-69 win in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament and ended a four-game losing streak Tuesday.
No. 11 seed SMU (20-12) faces No. 6 seed and No. 24 Louisville in the second round on Wednesday.
Jaden Toombs contributed 16 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, while Samet Yigitoglu and Corey Washington both had 12 points for the Mustangs, who avenged a one-point regular season road loss to the Orange. Yigitoglu added 11 rebounds as SMU outrebounded Syracuse on the boards 44-31.
All five SMU starters reached double figures shortly after midway through the second half. Miller and Pierre each made five 3-pointers, and the duo accounted for all but one of the team’s 11 long-range goals.
Syracuse (15-17) ended the season with six straight losses. Nate Kingz had 25 points for the Orange but did not score in the final eight-plus minutes. Tyler Betsey’s 15 points off the bench gave Syracuse its only double-digit scoring tally.
The Orange shot 9 for 34 on 3-pointers and got to the free throw line just five times in the first 34 minutes of the game.
The Orange are completing their third season under coach Adrian Autry, a Syracuse graduate who replaced the legendary Jim Boeheim and failed to lead the team back to the NCAA Tournament.
Miller hit two 3-pointers early in the second half to give the Mustangs a 51-42 lead. SMU paced the offense with 25 points in the first 10 minutes of the second half, taking a 64-48 lead thanks to back-to-back 3s from Pierre.
Kingz scored 25 of Syracuse’s first 50 points. Syracuse trailed 76-66 with three minutes left before Pierre drained three more minutes.
SMU led 39-38 at halftime, and Syracuse maintained a slim lead despite only two points from Donnie Freeman, the season’s leading scorer. Freeman finished with 7 before fouling out.
–Bob Sutton, Field Level Media
