Syracuse opened Gerry McNamara’s first game as head coach with a 74-58 win over New Haven on Monday night at the JMA Wireless Dome, and the night carried more weight than the final score alone. McNamara was coaching his alma mater for the first time just two days after the death of his father, and the Orange rewarded him by racing to an 18-0 lead that gave them enough cushion to control the rest of the game.
The win wasn’t pretty, but it did offer a few clear signs of what Syracuse can become.
Sadiq White delivered the most complete performance of his college career, and it started almost immediately. On Syracuse’s first possession, he grabbed an offensive rebound, setting the tone for a night in which he attacked the glass with real purpose.
White finished with 10 rebounds, the first time he has reached that mark in college, and he did it at a moment when his rebounding had been a major question. He also made his presence felt defensively with several blocks and a strong overall effort on that end.
White’s offense was just as encouraging. He played with more force and directness than he had shown before, including a second-half sequence where he drove baseline for a hard dunk and then attacked the paint again on the next trip to draw a foul. He scored 14 points, matching his career high, though he still has work to do at the line after missing more than half of his free throws.
Gavin Doty looked like the engine of the team from the opening tip. He buried a three on Syracuse’s first possession and added the Orange’s second field goal soon after, but his impact went well beyond scoring.
Doty brought the same relentless hustle he showed at Siena, and it showed up in all the small, exhausting plays that swing games. In the first half, he knocked the ball loose from a New Haven player right after a defensive rebound and finished the play while falling to the floor.
Doty ended with 14 points on just seven shot attempts, plus 13 rebounds and three assists, giving him a second straight double-double if the exhibition game against Nagara is included. Until Aiden Tobiason returns, he looks like Syracuse’s workhorse, and maybe even after that, depending on how Gerry McNamara wants to use him.
Kiyan Anthony also gave Syracuse a much better offensive night than he had in exhibition play. After scoring just six points in 51 exhibition minutes and going 2-for-16 without a made three, he looked far more settled against New Haven.
Anthony got to the rim more cleanly with scoop drives, and while he missed some threes, the overall result was a step forward. He finished with 17 points on 5-for-12 shooting and went 5-for-6 at the line, a notable improvement after shooting just 63% from the stripe last year.
He also added three assists without turning the ball over.
Still, the larger question around Anthony remains. He has shown he can start hot, as he did in the first three games against Binghamton, Delaware State, and Drexel last season, but he still has to prove he can carry that into Syracuse’s bigger games.
The rotation also gave a strong hint that McNamara is still sorting out who fits where. Doty logged 34 minutes, nine more than any other Syracuse player, while seven Orange players landed between 16 and 25 minutes.
Garwey Dual played 23 minutes at point guard, with Ryan Moesch at 17. Luke Wilson handled 23 minutes at center, while Abdramane Siby got 16.
Mark Morano, Anthony, and White each played between 22 and 25 minutes.
Francis Folefac did not appear Monday night, and Amarri Monroe was limited to nine minutes. Tasman Goodrick and Iker Martinez saw action late. McNamara is clearly still testing combinations and trying to figure out which lineups can survive in different situations.
Monroe is one player worth watching Thursday against CCSU, especially if his conditioning continues to improve. The bigger rotation questions may come next week, when Syracuse faces Indiana and St.
John’s. McNamara appears to be easing Siby into the mix against lower-level competition, but the real test will be whether he’s ready for 10-15 minutes against a high-major opponent.
In Other News...
Syracuse Just Entered Another Intriguing Recruitment Tied To A Familiar Pipeline
Syracuse has dipped back into a familiar recruiting lane, extending a scholarship offer to 2028 four-star center Miguel Sousa. The 6-foot-11 big man is at Spire Academy now, but his background includes time with Valencia Basket Club in Spain, a path that fits the Oranges recent habit of looking beyond the usual high school circuit for frontcourt talent.
Sousa is already drawing national attention, with offers from Ohio State, BYU and Ole Miss, and his name adds another layer to a recruiting picture that has been building under Gerry McNamara. Syracuses push has also included 2027 verbal commit Moussa Kamissoko and other top prospects, giving the Orange a chance to keep strengthening a pipeline that has quietly become part of the programs identity. [Read more 🡒]
Syracuses Clemson Test Just Raised The Stakes Around Fran Brown
Syracuse has steadied itself just enough to make the next stretch feel meaningful again. After snapping out of a losing skid with back-to-back ACC wins, the Orange have started to look more like the team they hoped to be, with the progress tied to player development and some coaching adjustments that have helped them clean up the details.
Now comes a home date with Clemson, and with it a chance to see whether that momentum can carry into a higher-stakes conference test. Athletic director Bryan Blair has already made clear how much football matters to Syracuse athletics, and his support for Dino Babers adds another layer to a game that is about more than one Saturday in the standings. [Read more 🡒]
Syracuse Enters Gerry McNamara Era With One Big Offensive Concern
Syracuses first three exhibitions under Gerry McNamara offered a useful early look at what the Orange might become, and also why there is still work to do before the games start counting. The team went 2-1, but the more revealing takeaway was the uneven nature of those tune-ups, with stretches of promising play offset by the kind of inconsistency that can make an offense hard to trust in November.
The 3-point shooting came and went, and so did some of the individual production, leaving McNamara with a clearer sense of which pieces can help and which ones still need polish. Gavin Doty and Ryan Moesch showed flashes of what they can bring, but the bigger question now is how all of it fits together when roles tighten and the regular season demands more than potential. [Read more 🡒]