Syracuse Basketball: 5 toughest non-conference opponents for 2018-19

Syracuse Basketball was a surprise inclusion in the 2018 NCAA Tournament, but they still earned a trip to the Sweet Sixteen. How does their schedule look for 18-19?

Syracuse was awarded a surprise 2018 NCAA Tournament berth which shocked and even angered many college basketball fans from across the country. Fans clamored that they wanted to see mid-major teams like Middle Tennessee, or at least they claimed to have wanted that, instead of the big name programs who have “mediocre” teams.

Even though Syracuse was seen as the least deserving Tournament team, the Orange rattled off three straight wins to advance from the play-in round to the Sweet Sixteen. First Arizona State, then TCU, and finally Michigan State fell to Syracuse in their surprising postseason run.

The Orange were disliked because they were not aesthetically pleasing on offense, but their trademark 2-3 zone with 7’2” anchor Paschal Chukwu made up for the offensive shortcomings. This season, Syracuse not only looks like a much better team but also one that will look much better on offense.

Last season, Tyus Battle and Frank Howard were required to create most of the offense and often settled for low-efficiency isolation plays. The additions of freshman scoring guard Jalen Carey and transfer wing Elijah Hughes should provide more offensive options, as should the potential improvements from sophomores O’Shae Brissett and Marek Dolezaj.

Syracuse certainly looks like an NCAA Tournament team on paper and could even crack the top 20 of the preseason rankings. While the ACC always provides opportunities to accumulate quality wins, Syracuse’s non-conference schedule will also offer difficult early-season tests.

This article will rank the 5 toughest games on Syracuse’s non-conference schedule. The list will take location (home/road/neutral) and obviously the quality of opponent into account.