Syracuse women’s basketball’s Tiana Mangakahia to miss 2019-20 season

Since her breast cancer diagnosis earlier this summer, we sort of knew it was a possibility that Syracuse Orange women’s basketball star Tiana Mangakahia could miss the 2019-20 season. And now, unfortunately, it appears that will be the case — per her remarks at a Tuesday press conference.

While not having Mangakahia on the court this season is unfortunate for SU’s chance to win the ACC (they were slated to be among the favorites), the bigger focus here is obviously on Mangakahia’s treatment and her long-term health. She’s shared that she’ll be applying for an extra year of eligibility, which would potentially allow her to rejoin the team for 2020-21. Seems like she’d be able to obtain the year without much difficulty. Don’t screw this up, NCAA...

Cancer’s never an easy thing for a person to deal with, especially at such a young age. But Tiana’s largely remains upbeat in the face of a scary situation. As Mangakahia continues her treatment, we’re still keeping her in our thoughts for a clean bill of health and a speedy recovery.

That, plus the rest of your Syracuse-related links below:

Syracuse’s Tiana Mangakahia will miss season, apply for extra year of eligibility (Syracuse.com)

Syracuse women’s point guard Tiana Mangakahia said on Tuesday that she intends to sit out the entire 2019-20 season while fighting breast cancer and return to the orange in two seasons Mangakahia made the remarks at a press conference at the Carmelo Anthony Center, her first public remarks since the diagnosis in June.

Discovering Dino: As young athlete, Babers found meaning of ‘Ohana’ (Syracuse.com)

When Yamashiro was in Central New York last spring for a meeting at Cornell, Babers invited him over to his house to watch Tiger Woods win The Masters, just so they could share the memory. “Dino makes me better because he loves me,” Yamashiro said. As a kid, Yamashiro looked at the Hawaii players as superheroes, and Babers was slapped together well, a chiseled jack-of-all-trades who played a little linebacker, safety, fullback and was a special teams aficionado.

2019 ACC expert picks: Most overrated and underrated teams, predicted order of finish (CBSSports)

I went with Syracuse not because I don’t expect the Orange to be good in 2019, but because this is a team that has to replace a lot of production from a 10-win team, and I’m not sure Dino Babers has this program in a “reload” phase just yet. Because of this, I wouldn’t be surprised if this team has trouble living up to preseason expectations many have for it,

The 2019 ESPN preseason college football All-America team (ESPN)

Kicker: Andre Szymt, Syracuse. As a redshirt freshman last season, Szmyt came out of nowhere to win the Syracuse place-kicking duties, and by the time he was finished, he had put together one of the great seasons by a kicker and won the Lou Groza Award. He’s consistent and has great range, as evidenced by his NCAA-leading 30-for-34 clip on field goal attempts and 3-for-3 mark on field goals of 50 yards or longer.

Jim Boeheim says not to be fooled by Italy results: ‘We have a long way to go’ (Syracuse.com)

Boeheim had spent the week praising the passing and playmaking abilities of his new team. He liked what he’d seen from his presumptive leading scorer, Elijah Hughes, “who showed he’s ready to lead, ready to make the big plays.” He appreciated the play of all his guards, all of whom will compete for playing time.

ACC Football: Preview and Predictions for 2019 Season (Bleacher Report)

PFF preseason 2019 All-ACC team (ProFootballFocus)

Orange picked third in Atlantic Division in ACC coaches poll (Cuse.com)

Former Syracuse football QB Eric Dungey invited to XFL (Syracuse.com)

Dino Babers joins Jim Rome Show (Jim Rome Show)

ACC Network Launch Week: ACCN Flips the Switch at 7 p.m. August 22 (ESPN PR)