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The 2026-27 Syracuse Orange men’s basketball season tips off in just over a month, so it’s time to look at the path ahead for the program in year one under new head coach Gerry McNamara.
To recap, after three exhibitions, Syracuse will play 32 total games this year: 14 non-conference opponents and 18 ACC games (not including the ACC Tournament). Of the non-con matchups, nine are at home, and five are away from the JMA Wireless Dome. The conference schedule is an even split between home and road games. The Orange will get 23 games against Power 5 opponents.
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Syracuse enters the year without an NCAA Tournament bid since the 2020-21 season. On paper, the schedule does pose quite a few challenges.
One of them: the valuable non-con wins can only come outside of the 315.
Syracuse is set to play 10 of its 32 (just over 30%) games against teams currently projected to make the field, according to ESPN’s latest bracketology update. Given the current eligibility uncertainty for dozens of athletes (including Syracuse transfer Amarri Monroe), these estimations could ultimately change. Broadly speaking, these are the 10 most “valuable” opponents to boost a tournament resume.
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – JUNE 9: Syracuse Orange head coach Gerry McNamara during a basketball practice at the Carmelo K. Anthony Basketball Center on June 9, 2026 in Syracuse, New York. (Photo by Todd F. Michalek/Syracuse Athletics/University Images via Getty Images)
Of the 10, four of them are non-con opponents: Providence, Indiana, Oklahoma, and St. John’s. All of them are true road or neutral-site games. Not only are those games valuable, but they come early in the year (before the start of conference play).
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That means GMac and the Orange have to be ready and fast to attempt to pick up a few of these potentially valuable wins. As discussed during the initial release of EvanMiya’s rankings, the ACC ranks fifth in the metric among the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, and Big East. There’s way less upside in…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/syracuse-men-basketball-early-breakdown-160000050.html
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Publish date : 2026-09-30 16:00:00
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