Orangeyes Daily Articles for Thursday for Basketball

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SU News

Syracuse basketball players Kyle Cuffe, Chris Bell and JJ Starling pose for a photo with fans at the SU Coaches Caravan stop at Heritage Hill Brewhouse in Pompey on Tuesday, August 6. Mike Waters | mwaters@syracuse.comMike Waters | mwaters@syracuse.com

Early impressions of Syracuse basketball’s 4 new transfers: ‘Better than what we saw on film’ (PS; $; Waters)

Syracuse basketball coach Adrian Autry has more new players than old players on his roster.

Four transfers and two incoming freshmen out-number the five returning players from last year’s team, which went 20-12 in Autry’s first year as a head coach.

As a result, team bonding has been as important as team building for Autry and his staff this summer.

With that in mind, Autry took the Syracuse players on a field trip this past weekend. After nearly a month of summer workouts, the Syracuse coaches and players made a weekend trip to New York City that while fun was also purposeful.

“They’ve been working hard and it was the weekend,’’ Autry said. “We’ve got one more week to go before we leave. I just wanted to do something with the guys where we could get away, change the scenery up.’’

Syracuse’s tour of the Big Apple included a tour of the Apollo Theater, a visit to the Museum of Jewish Heritage and a Yankees game. Mainly, though, the excursion gave the coaches and players to spend time together away from the practice court.

“We didn’t get a chance to do a lot of that stuff last year,’’ Autry said. “I wanted to do something. I think every coach is challenged now when you have transfers coming in and you’re trying to bring them into the fold.

“I think it’s important to spend time not only on the court, but off the court, and try to build that chemistry.’’

After the 2023-24 season, Syracuse lost starting guard Judah Mintz, who entered the NBA draft; and six players who left via the transfer portal.

To replenish his roster, Autry turned to the portal. The four players transferring to Syracuse; three seniors and one graduate student, bring maturity and experience.
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Syracuse basketball guard Kyle Cuffe has transformed his body: ‘The credit goes to him’ (PS; $; Ditota)

When Kyle Cuffe watched video of himself playing basketball last season, he was struck by his size.

The 6-foot-2 Syracuse guard weighed 198, he said. At times during the season, he probably weighed more.

“I was just like, I can’t walk around like this,” Cuffe said during a Tuesday morning conversation. “I never used to look like this on the court.”

His Syracuse coaches, said Orange assistant Brenden Straughn, told Cuffe after the 2023-24 season that to achieve the best basketball version of himself, he would need to get in better shape.

So when Syracuse went on break last April, Cuffe put himself on a diet.

He watched what he ate. He loaded up on food during the morning, then carefully considered what he consumed the rest of the day. He drank a gallon of water.

“I would wake up early, work out, then I would eat, work out again, then I would probably take a nap and then snack, really,” he said. “I’d work out again and maybe eat something real light like a salad or some cashews before going to bed.”

Those eating restrictions carried into the summer, when he went home to Harlem for a few weeks.

Cuffe said he now weighs 185. It’s the lightest he’s been, he said, since he started playing college basketball three seasons ago. Straughn said when Cuffe walked into summer workouts, teammates noticed the transformation in his body. He is one of five returning players on the Orange roster this season.

“The credit goes to him,” SU coach Adrian Autry said. “He came back in shape. He’s made a really big jump this summer and he’s maintained it since coming back.”

Cuffe said he’s fully healthy this summer, which helped him lose weight and keep it off.
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Syracuse Basketball: Acaden Lewis just visited; now 4-star Shon Abaev has SU official (itlh; Adler)

One of the top all-around performers across the country on the AAU circuit this spring and summer plans to make a trip to Syracuse basketball later this month.

Travis Branham, a top national analyst with 247Sports, said on his X page and in an article on Wednesday that 2025 four-star wing/small forward Shon Abaev from Florida has lined up six upcoming official visits.

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One of those officials will be to the Orange. Branham reports that the 6-foot-8 Abaev will take an official visit to Syracuse basketball from August 30 to August 31. By the way, Syracuse football will have its 2024 season opener on Saturday, Aug. 31, when the 'Cuse will host Ohio at the JMA Wireless Dome.

News of Abaev's expected official visit to the Hill is naturally awesome to see, but not altogether surprising. In recent months, Abaev has suggested in interviews that he was eyeing a possible trip to Central New York, something that various national recruiting analysts also echoed of late.

Still, for the Syracuse basketball staff to land an upcoming official visit from the top-40 national prospect in the rising senior class is highly encouraging. Orange coaches offered a scholarship to Abaev in late April of this year.

Syracuse basketball soon will host 2025 4-star Shon Abaev on an official visit.

Abaev, a standout at the Calvary Christian Academy in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has previously taken official visits to Georgia, Arizona State, Oregon and Tennessee.

His full offer sheet, which totals more than 20, includes schools such as Maryland, Cincinnati, Mississippi State, Xavier, Missouri, Georgia, Michigan, Oregon, Tennessee, Arizona State, Auburn, Creighton, Dayton, Florida, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Kansas, LSU, St. John's, Southern California, UCF and USF, among others.
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Photo by Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post via Getty Images

How incoming freshman Donnie Freeman can immediately set the tone for Syracuse (TNIAAM; Ostrowski)

The last time Syracuse Orange men’s basketball had this much hype around one new recruit, the team went on to win the whole thing.

While that’s an extreme expectation to set on incoming SF Donnie Freeman, it does raise the question of how much SU can expect out of their five-star freshman.

Freeman has a 0.9953 rating on the 247 Sports composite - the third-highest among all SU recruits since the service began in 2003. He’s also Top-15 in his class and has been ranked as high as #6 (ESPN).

The comparison to Carmelo Anthony is all too easy to make while the Orange desperately need another Messiah to revitalize the program, but there are also more reasonable samples of past recruits to analyze. Here are a few examples of how similar four- and five-star prospects have performed in their first seasons in Syracuse. All stats are averages:

• Donte Greene (2007-08) - 35.8 min, 17.7 pts, 7.2 reb
• Jerami Grant (2012-13) - 14.3 min, 3.9 pts, 3.0 reb
• Chris McCullough (2014-15) - 28.1 min, 9.3 pts, 6.9 reb
• Malachi Richardson (2015-16) - 34.4 min, 13.4 pts, 4.3 reb
• Tyus Battle (2016-17) - 30.7 min, 11.3 pts, 2.1 reb
• Benny Williams (2020-21) - 10.8 min, 1.9 pts, 1.4 reb

All of these guys had a composite rating of at least 0.9750, all are of similar height and builds, and all were originally forwards when recruited by SU. (Richardson was moved to guard, in part because of his perimeter shooting.) The biggest differences among them are in the rosters constructed around them.

I included Greene because he was really the last time a freshman was expected to step up and lead as much as Donnie is now. He was, after all, the highest-rated Orange prospect. Yes, Jonny Flynn was also a huge part of that 07-08 team, but he was never supposed to be the number two guy until Eric Devendorf went down 10 games in. From that moment on, it was Greene running the offense and getting the Orange back to postseason play,

Grant was highly-regarded, but only needed as a depth piece. A year to develop ended up helping him in the long run, as he’s one of the few Orange alums still standing in the NBA. McCullough, Richardson, and Battle were all surrounded by top talent whom they quickly meshed with. But Benny was a total mismatch, as he never really fit in under Jim Boeheim, and frustrations boiled over under Adrian Autry which led to his dismissal.

My point is that Freeman’s expectations should be relative to the rest of his team. And it’s safe to say he will not be running a one-man show this fall.

J.J. Starling and Chris Bell were both double-digit scorers last season, as were all four transfers Coach Autry brought in to shore up the depleted roster. There is more than enough scoring depth to where Freeman won’t have to worry about pushing 22 and 10 a la Melo... but maybe 15 and 5 is more realistic.

With an impressive outside shot and solid frame to be physical, he can be dangerous all over the court. If Eddie Lampkin runs the offense from the paint, similar to Jesse Edwards not-so-long ago, Freeman seems like an ideal 1B scoring option.

Regardless, his very being here is setting another kind of expectation: that Red can recruit top talent. Whether Donnie ends up being a 1-and-done like some on this list, or a multi-year contributor like others, he has signaled to the rest of college basketball that Syracuse is once again competing for the best of the best - something that they’ve done only marginally the last decade. The 2025 class is already in good shape and Autry is in the hunt for even more top prospects... maybe even the son of Anthony.
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Syracuse Basketball Journalist Mike Waters talks Transfers, Chance Westry, Starting 5 & more | EP 81 (youtube; p;odcast; Light It Up Sports)

Syracuse Basketball Journalist Mike Waters talks Transfers, Chance Westry, Starting 5 & more | EP 81

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Syracuse Basketball: 5-star wing Alex Constanza will officially visit 'Cuse this fall (itlh; Adler)

Elite rising junior Alex Constanza, a five-star guard/small forward and a top-five national prospect in the 2026 class, will take an official visit to Syracuse basketball this fall, according to his dad, Ed Constanza.

Alex Constanza and his dad are working to finalize an exact date with Orange assistant coach Allen Griffin, the program's lead recruiter for the 6-foot-8 Constanza, who is rated inside the top 15 of his cycle by every main recruiting service.

Ed Constanza tells me via text message that his son and Griffin have "very good communication" with one another, and Alex Constanza is "definitely intrigued" by Syracuse basketball. As I first reported, the 'Cuse offered a scholarship to Constanza in mid-January of this year.

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To date, Constanza has received around 30 offers in total. Some of his more recent offers have arrived from schools such as Southern California, Oregon, Ole Miss, Florida Atlantic, Miami, Tennessee and Arkansas.
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Syracuse Orange forward Chris Bell (4) drives Orange’s game against Clemson In South Carolina March 5, 2024. Photo courtesy of Syracuse Athletics ( Todd Michalek)Syracuse Athletics

Syracuse men’s basketball announces second exhibition game for 2024-25 (PS; Ditota)
The Syracuse men’s basketball team will play an exhibition game against Slippery Rock on Oct. 30, the school announced today in a news release.

A previous exhibition against Clarion had been announced for Oct. 26. Both games will be played in the JMA Wireless Dome.

The Orange’s non-conference schedule for the upcoming season is nearly complete. Sources have indicated a game against Le Moyne is on the schedule, though nothing official has been announced by SU, the host team.

Here’s what we know about Syracuse’s 2024-25 non-conference schedule this season; game times, except for the Maryland game, are TBA. The ACC will announce specific dates for conference games later this summer.

Nov. 12: Colgate, home

Nov. 16: Youngstown State, home

Nov. 21, 22: Legends Classic, Barclays Center, Brooklyn. (Rest of the field: Texas, Texas Tech and St. Joseph’s)

Nov. 27: Cornell, home

Dec. 3: at Tennessee (ACC/SEC Challenge)

Dec. 10: Albany, home

Dec. 14: Georgetown, home

Dec. 21: Maryland at Barclays Center, noon

Dec. 28: Bucknell, home

The ACC games, to jog your memory, will look like this for SU:

Home/Away: Boston College, Pitt, Notre Dame

Home: Duke, Georgia Tech, Louisville, North Carolina, NC State, Virginia, Wake Forest

Away: Cal, Clemson, Florida State, Miami, SMU, Stanford, Virginia Tech

Syracuse And Georgetown Getting Ready To Reignite An Old Big East Basketball Rivalry (bcssn.com)

Syracuse is scheduled to play long-time rival Georgetown for the 100th time when the two teams meet on Saturday, Dec. 14, in the JMA Wireless Dome.

Series Notes

• The Orange have faced the Hoyas 99 times and lead the series, 54-45.
• Syracuse and Georgetown squared off the last nine straight seasons. The Orange won five of those encounters.
• The teams first met in 1930, when the Orange defeated the Hoyas, 40-18, in Syracuse's Archbold Gym.
• Syracuse won last year's encounter in Washington, D.C., 80-68.

The Orange were 20-12 a year ago in Adrian Autry's first campaign at the helm. Syracuse returns guard J.J. Starling (13.3 ppg) and forward Chris Bell (12.0 ppg.) from last season's squad. Both head into their junior campaigns as returning starters. Key incoming transfers include guard Jaquan Carlos (10.4 ppg., 6.3 apg. at Hofstra), forward Jyáre Davis (17.1 ppg., 7.5 rpg. at Delaware), center Eddie Lampkin (10.6 ppg., 7.0 rpg. at Colorado), and swingman Lucas Taylor (14.5 ppg. at Georgia State).

Georgetown was 9-23 overall and 2-18 in the BIG EAST Conference under first-year head coach Ed Cooley last year. Guard Jayden Epps finished third among BIG EAST scorers with an 18.5 average.

Roster Revealed for 2024 CBT Celebrity Basketball Classic (syr.edu; Kobland)

A news conference at the JMA Wireless Dome Tuesday had the feel of a family reunion. There was plenty of ribbing between participants about growing older and their skills fading, but make no mistake, their competitive nature still exists. After all, these are athletes who played at a very high level.

“We’re all competitive,” said John Wallace ’96, a former member of the Syracuse men’s basketball team. “That’s why we came to Syracuse.”

Wallace is part of a large group of returning Syracuse University athletes participating in the Celebrity Basketball Classic on Sept. 12. The game is part of Coming Back Together (CBT) 2024. Every three years, Black and Latino alumni come back to campus to celebrate their accomplishments, meet current students and remain connected with the University.

On Tuesday, organizers revealed the list of returning athletes who plan to be on hand for the game. Among them is Vera “Sweet V” Jones ’88, a Syracuse Hall of Fame basketball player. Jones joined the news conference from Florida, pausing briefly to mention she was still getting alerts in the wake of Hurricane Debby passing nearby.

“Speaking of which, I plan to be a hurricane on the mic and am very excited to be coming back,” said Jones, who will serve as game announcer. “This game is for those who can walk the walk. I can talk the talk and that’s what I plan to do.”

Rachel Vassel ’91, associate vice president from the Office of Multicultural Advancement, mentioned that while players enjoy coming back to play against one another, there is a real excitement for being back in front of the fans.

“Fans in Syracuse have rallied behind our teams, and we consistently hear from those who have played in previous CBT Celebrity Classics about their fond memories of playing before the home crowd,” Vassel said.

“When we think about community and bringing people together, Syracuse University athletics has a very strong attraction, and at the heart of it are the men and women who left it on the court and the field,” said Melanie Littlejohn, president and CEO of CNY Community Foundation and a sponsor of CBT. “The excitement that Syracuse athletics has brought to this community is something the Community Foundation wanted to get behind because we recognize that together we are absolutely stronger.”

And of course, about family.

“It’s all that brotherhood and sisterhood from being at Syracuse,” said John Wallace, “and bleeding Orange.”

Tickets for the game are available at Cuse.com/Dome or 888-DomeTix (366.3849).

The net portion of the proceeds from the CBT Celebrity Classic Basketball Game will support the Women’s Basketball Head Coach’s Fund.

Partial roster of participants:

• Billy Owens (Men’s Basketball)
• John Wallace (Men’s Basketball)
• Lawrence Moten (Men’s Basketball)
• Lazarus Sims (Men’s Basketball)
• EJ Dowdell (Football)
• Will Hunter (Football)
• Vera Jones (Women’s Basketball)
• Mookie Jones (Men’s Basketball)
• Scoop Jardine (Men’s Basketball)
• Tyus Battle (Men’s Basketball)
• Naje Murray (Women’s Basketball)
• Jason Poles (Football)
• Dave Byrd (Football)
• Roxi McNabb (Women’s Basketball)
• Mark Pryor (Track and Field)
• Maurice Jackson (Football)
• Iasia Hemmingway (Women’s Basketball)
• Brandon Triche (Men’s Basketball)
• John Bol (Men’s Basketball)
• Isis Young (Women’s Basketball)
• Elimu Nelson (Men’s Basketball)
• Patrice Brown (Women’s Basketball)
• Gabriel Cooper (Women’s Basketball)
• Artie Vaughn (Track and Field)
• Dwayne Murray (Track and Field)

Other

Daylight Saving Time: When do we turn our clocks back? (PS; Herbert)

When do we turn our clocks back for daylight savings time?

Daylight Saving Time 2024 ends on Sunday, Nov. 3, at 2 a.m. For most people, that means you should plan on changing your clocks the night before (on Saturday, Nov. 2), turning them back a full hour; you’ll “gain” an extra hour of sleep or possibly enjoy another hour out Saturday night.

Computers, TVs, cell phones and other digital devices will automatically update at 2 a.m. but you’ll want to manually set any other clocks back one hour. We always “spring forward” when DST begins and “fall back” when it ends.

Daylight Saving Time, also colloquially referred to as “daylight savings time,” begins on the second Sunday in March and ends the first Sunday of November.

Despite some confusion in recent years, most of the U.S. still observes Daylight Saving Time; Arizona and Hawaii do not participate in DST. Multiple bills have been introduced in the New York state legislature to end the changing of clocks in the Empire State, but no progress has been made.

In 2022, the Senate approved a bill known as the Sunshine Protection Act to make daylight saving time permanent nationwide. However, the legislation stalled in the House due to a disagreement over whether to keep standard time or make daylight savings time permanent.

A bipartisan group of 12 senators reintroduced the legislation last year to end the changing of the clocks. The bill would’ve made Daylight Saving Time permanent, which would mean we would not “fall back” in November, making sunrise around 8:15 a.m. on the first day of winter (December 21) in New York; if we turn our clocks back, then sunrise would be around 7:15 a.m.
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