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Syracuse Hosts Exhibition Against Daemen
10/26/2023 5:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Game Details: Friday, Oct. 27, Syracuse, N.Y., 7:00 p.m.
Live Video: ACC Network Extra
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X (Twitter): @Cuse_MBB | @Cuse
Facebook: Syracuse Orange
Syracuse Links: News | Roster | Schedule
Daemen Links: News | Roster | Schedule
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Coach Adrian Autry and the Syracuse men's basketball team opens its exhibition slate against Division II Daemen on Friday, Oct. 27, at 7:00 p. m. in the JMA Wireless Dome.
Setting the Stage
Syracuse brings a 25-game winning streak in exhibition games into the pairing with the Wildcats. The Orange finished 17-15 in 2022-23.
The matchup will be the second exhibition for the Wildcats, who fell Buffalo 71-67 on Monday. The Wildcats ended last season with a 20-9 record.
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Familiar Faces
While the Orange and the Wildcats have never faced off during the regular season, the two squads did meet in an exhibition contest in 2019-20. On that occasion, Syracuse emerged with the victory, 90-71.
Two players on the Wildcats who may sound familiar to the Orange are sophomore guards Payton and Preston Shumpert. The two Syracuse, N.Y., natives are the sons of former SU star Preston Shumpert. The elder Shumpert, a prolific scorer who earned two First Team All-Big East Conference honors, averaged 14.2 points and 4.4 rebounds per game from 1998-2002. His sons prepped at Jamesville-DeWitt High School.
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A New Era
Syracuse begins the campaign without Hall of Fame Coach Jim Boeheim at the helm for the first time since 1976. Autry, who was a four-year starter and later an assistant coach under Boeheim, was named head coach in March 2023.
Key Returners
The Orange are welcoming back three of their five starters from a year ago, headlined by guard Judah Mintz. The sophomore is coming off an impressive freshman campaign, where he averaged 16.3 points, 4.6 assists, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.8 steals per game. Mintz has already been named to the prestigious Bob Cousy Award Watch List, given to the nation's top point guard, and earned Preseason All-ACC Second Team recognition this week.
Junior forward Benny Williams made dramatic improvement a year ago and averaged 7.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, while appearing in 30 contests. Sophomore forward Chris Bell. Bell, a starter 30 games, averaged 6.6 points and 1.8 rebounds in his rookie campaign..
Two other key returners for the Orange whoare expected to see increased roles are sophomore forward Maliq Brown and sophomore guard Justin Taylor. Brown, known for his versatile play style and athleticism, put up 5.7 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, while Taylor averaged 4.2 points per game as a freshman. Junior center Mounir Hima and sophomore postman Peter Carey are the other returning scholarship players for Syracuse.
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'Cuse Newcomers
Coach Autry made a splash in the transfer portal, bringing in some big names to add roster depth. Baldwinsville native and sophomore guard JJ Starling transferred after his freshman season at Notre Dame. Starling, a former consensus five-star, top 25 recruit, made an instant impact for the Irish, averaging 11.2 points an outing. He joined Mintz on the ACC All-Freshman Team.
Additionally, the Orange brought in some size through the portal, headlined by Naheem McLeod. The junior center, who stands at 7-foot-4, is the tallest player in Syracuse basketball history. The Florida State transfer produced 4.5 points per game in both his freshman and sophomore seasons.
Redshirt sophomore guard Kyle Cuffe Jr. transferred from Kansas. Rounding out the Syracuse newcomers is freshman center William Patterson from the Patrick School (N.J.).
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Tickets
Season tickets starting at $250 and a five-game partial plan are on sale online (cuse.com/tickets), by phone (1-888-DOMETIX)Â and at the Dome Box Office (Gate B). There are courtside and center-court season tickets still available. Non-conference, single-game tickets are also available for purchase.
For complete coverage of Syracuse men's basketball, follow the team on X (@Cuse_MBB) and Instagram (cuse_mbb).
