Syracuse basketball vs. Daemen College: TV/streaming, time, history & more

Teams: Syracuse Orange (0-0) vs. Daemen College (0-0)

Day & Time: Saturday, October 26, 7 p.m. ET

Location: The site of the #1 school in home attendance in 2019, AKA The Carrier Dome.

TV/Streaming: ACCNX

Radio: TK 99/105

Photo by Rich Barnes/Getty Images

First/Last Meeting: This is the first meeting between Syracuse and Daemen College.

Head Coaches: Syracuse - Jim Boeheim (44th year; 1,045-379) | Daemen - Mike MacDonald (6th year; 105-43)

Coach Bio: MacDonald has over 30 years of coaching experience, including 22 years as a head coach. He has an overall record of 361-269. Before joining Daemen College, he spent eight years at Medaille College, advanced to the post-season six times and is the school’s all-time leader in wins. Prior to that he was head coach at Canisius College from 1997-2006, where he was one of only five coaches to have a 20+ win season. He took over that program from John Beilein, who moved on to coach at Richmond.

Last Year: While ‘Cuse won 20 games, the season was ultimately underwhelming based on expectations and preseason rankings, where the Orange were as high as No. 16. It didn’t help that they were ousted in the first round of the NCAA Tournament by Baylor.

If Syracuse Wins: Warm fuzzies I guess? In reality, it doesn’t mean much other than giving the team a chance to build some chemistry.

If Syracuse Loses: “THE SKY IS FALLING” will be a theme for sure. Personally, I don’t see it as a big deal if we lose. It’s an exhibition game and they’ll be testing lineups, defensive schemes, the press, etc. Anything goes.

This, that, and the other: In his 1,400+ games, Jim Boeheim has never faced the Daemen College Wildcats. He will do so for the first time this weekend at the Carrier Dome. The exhibition game will be the first true chance to see the Orange against an NCAA-level opponent.

I didn’t say they were a Division I opponent. In fact, Daemen is Division 2. But don’t let that fool you as they should offer a solid test for Syracuse basketball. Last year, Daemen finished 24-6 and topped the East Coast Conference (ECC) at 16-2.

With four returning starters, they offer a unique mix of talented veterans alongside some fresh new faces. One name that you probably won’t recognize, but will surely remember by game’s end, is Andrew Sischo. Sischo was a Division II Second Team All-American last year and the ECC’s player of the year... as a sophomore.

He’s an excellent scorer (20.9 points per game) and rebounder (10.1 rebounds per game) and will give our centers fits all game. Bourama Sidibe, Marek Dolejaz, and the two freshmen are going to have their hands full in this one.

Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images

Daemen has three players that shot better than 36 percent from 3-point range last year, including Jeff Redband, who hit 79 threes at a 44.1 percent clip. That’s not a drop in the bucket. He can shoot it, which could pose a huge problem for the zone if he gets hot.

So could Syracuse really be on the brink of another Le Moyne?

Nah. As good as Daemen is on paper, they are still a D2 school. Syracuse should beat even the absolute best D2 school 99 times out of 100. The talent gap across the board is significant.

And besides, even if they did somehow lose, things turned out pretty good for Syracuse after that LeMoyne loss. Early competition is a good thing.

That said, I don’t expect Daemen to win on Saturday. But I do expect them to keep it competitive and to keep the Orange honest. This team needs to be tested early and often to develop that killer instinct, so I’m totally okay with it being a close game or even if we’re trailing throughout.

Here’s hoping this is the first of many victories to come this season!

Fun Fact: Jim Boeheim has claimed victories against more than 15 different colleges in New York, and will add another if Syracuse is able to upend Daemen.

Fun Fact #2: John Wallace’s son, Joey Wallace, is a redshirt senior for the Daemen Wildcats.