# 2020–21 Syracuse Orange men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Syracuse Orange men's basketball team represented Syracuse University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Orange were led by 45th-year head coach Jim Boeheim and played their home games at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York as eighth-year members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Orange finished the season 18–10, 9–7 in ACC play, to finish in eight place. In the ACC tournament, they defeated NC State in the second round before losing to Virginia in the Quarterfinals. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as an eleven seed in the Midwest Region. In the tournament, they defeated six seed San Diego State in the first round and three seed West Virginia in the second round, before losing to two seed Houston in the Sweet Sixteen.

## Previous season

The Orange finished the 2019–20 season 18–14, 10–10 in ACC play to finish in a tie for sixth place. They defeated North Carolina in the second round of the 2020 ACC tournament and was scheduled to play Louisville in the quarterfinals before the tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The NCAA tournament and NIT were also cancelled due to the pandemic.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Brycen Goodine | 0 | G | 6'3" | 183 | Freshman | New Bedford, MA | Transferred to Providence |
| Jalen Carey | 5 | G | 6'3" | 186 | Sophomore | Harlem, NY | Transferred to Rhode Island |
| Howard Washington | 10 | G | 6'3" | 175 | Junior | Buffalo, NY | Transferred to South Alabama |
| Brendan Paul | 12 | G | 6'2" | 175 | Sophomore | Shaker Heights, OH | Transferred to Fairmont State |
| Shaun Belbey | 24 | G | 5'10" | 165 | Graduate Student | Brick, NJ | Graduated |
| Elijah Hughes | 33 | F | 6'6" | 215 | Junior | Beacon, NY | Declared for 2020 NBA draft; selected 39th overall by New Orleans Pelicans and then traded to Utah Jazz |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Alan Griffin | 0 | F | 6'5" | 190 | Junior | Ossining, NY | Illinois |

### 2020 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Kadary Richmond PG / SG | Brooklyn, NY | Brewster Academy | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | Oct 28, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 82 ||||||
| Woody Newton PF | Baltimore, MD | Mt. Zion Prep | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | May 28, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 ||||||
| Frank Anselem C | Windsor, CA | Prolific Prep | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Jun 3, 2020 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 79 ||||||
| Chaz Owens SF | Bryn Mawr, PA | Scotland Campus Prep | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Sep 3, 2020 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: N/A ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2020 Syracuse Signees". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 24, 2020. "2020 Syracuse Signees". Scout.com. Retrieved November 24, 2020. "2020 Syracuse Signees". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 24, 2020. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved November 24, 2020. "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 24, 2020. ||||||

## Schedule and results

Source:
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 27, 2020* 3:00 p.m., ACCN | | Bryant | W 85–84 | 1–0 | 23 – Boeheim | 12 – Tied | 9 – Dolezaj | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| December 3, 2020* 8:00 p.m., ACCRSN | | Niagara | W 75–45 | 2–0 | 23 – Guerrier | 13 – Guerrier | 6 – Richmond | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| December 5, 2020* 7:00 p.m., ACCRSN | | Rider | W 87–52 | 3–0 | 23 – Griffin | 8 – Newton | 6 – Richmond | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| December 8, 2020* 9:30 p.m., ESPN2 | | at No. 21 Rutgers ACC–Big Ten Challenge | L 69–79 | 3–1 | 20 – Griffin | 8 – Griffin | 7 – Richmond | Rutgers Athletic Center (0) Piscataway, NJ |
| December 12, 2020 1:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at Boston College | W 101–63 | 4–1 (1–0) | 22 – Griffin | 10 – Griffin | 7 – Dolezaj | Conte Forum (0) Chestnut Hill, MA |
| December 16, 2020* 3:00 pm, ACCN | | Northeastern | W 62–56 | 5–1 | 21 – Girard III | 16 – Guerrier | 3 – Girard III | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| December 19, 2020* 6:00 pm, ACCN | | Buffalo | W 107–96 $^{OT}$ | 6–1 | 27 – Guerrier | 11 – Guerrier | 5 – Tied | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| December 30, 2020 5:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Wake Forest | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | LJVM Coliseum Winston-Salem, NC |
| January 6, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | | No. 25 Florida State | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY |
| January 6, 2021 4:30 p.m., ACCN | | Pittsburgh | L 60–63 | 6–2 (1–1) | 15 – Griffin | 8 – Griffin | 6 – Girard III | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| January 9, 2021* 8:00 p.m., ESPN | | Georgetown | W 74–69 | 7–2 | 21 – Boeheim | 9 – Tied | 8 – Girard III | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| January 12, 2021 9:00 p.m., ACCN | | at North Carolina | L 75–81 | 7–3 (1–2) | 23 – Guerrier | 11 – Guerrier | 4 – Boeheim | Dean Smith Center (0) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 16, 2021 12:00 p.m., ACCRSN | | at Pittsburgh | L 76–96 | 7–4 (1–3) | 28 – Griffin | 12 – Guerrier | 5 – Boeheim | Peterson Events Center (500) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 19, 2021 7:00 p.m., ACCN | | Miami (FL) | W 83–57 | 8–4 (2–3) | 23 – Tied | 8 – Guerrier | 8 – Richmond | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| January 23, 2021 12:00 p.m., ACCRSN | | No. 16 Virginia Tech | W 78–60 | 9–4 (3–3) | 20 – Guerrier | 10 – Griffin | 4 – Girard III | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| January 25, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN | | at No. 8 Virginia | L 58–81 | 9–5 (3–4) | 15 – Guerrier | 8 – Griffin | 3 – Dolezaj | John Paul Jones Arena (250) Charlottesville, VA |
| January 31, 2021 6:00 p.m., ACCN | | NC State | W 76–73 | 10–5 (4–4) | 19 – Boeheim | 10 – Guerrier | 6 – Dolezaj | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| February 3, 2021 7:00 p.m., ACCN | | Louisville | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY |
| February 6, 2021 2:00 p.m., ACCN | | at Clemson | L 61–78 | 10–6 (4–5) | 19 – Girard | 6 – Guerrier | 3 – Richmond | Littlejohn Coliseum (1,876) Clemson, SC |
| February 9, 2021 6:30 p.m., ACCN | | at NC State | W 77–68 | 11–6 (5–5) | 22 – Griffin | 7 – Guerrier | 3 – Tied | PNC Arena (25) Raleigh, NC |
| February 13, 2021 2:00 p.m., ACCN | | Boston College | W 75–67 | 12–6 (6–5) | 16 – Girard III | 9 – Guerrier | 3 – 3 tied | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| February 17, 2021 6:30 p.m., ACCN | | at Louisville | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | KFC Yum! Center Louisville, KY |
| February 20, 2021 2:00 p.m., ACCN | | Notre Dame | W 75–67 | 13–6 (7–5) | 29 – Boeheim | 14 – Guerrier | 4 – Dolezaj | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| February 22, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN | | at Duke | L 71–85 | 13–7 (7–6) | 21 – Boeheim | 8 – Tied | 4 – Boeheim | Cameron Indoor Stadium (0) Durham, NC |
| February 27, 2021 12:00 p.m., ACCN | | at Georgia Tech | L 77–84 | 13–8 (7–7) | 26 – Griffin | 8 – Edwards | 6 – Richmond | McCamish Pavilion (1,200) Atlanta, GA |
| March 1, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN | | North Carolina | W 72–70 | 14–8 (8–7) | 26 – Boeheim | 8 – Edwards | 9 – Richmond | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| March 3, 2021 5:00 p.m., ACCN | | Clemson | W 64–54 | 15–8 (9–7) | 22 – Griffin | 10 – Griffin | 7 – Girard III | Carrier Dome (0) Syracuse, NY |
| ACC tournament |||||||||
| March 10, 2021 12:00 p.m., ACCN | (8) | vs. (9) NC State Second round | W 89–68 | 16–8 | 27 – Boeheim | 8 – Tied | 5 – Tied | Greensboro Coliseum (2,820) Greensboro, NC |
| March 11, 2021 12:00 p.m., ESPN2 | (8) | vs. (1) No. 16 Virginia Quarterfinals | L 69–72 | 16–9 | 31 – Boeheim | 10 – Guerrier | 4 – Tied | Greensboro Coliseum (2,820) Greensboro, NC |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| March 19, 2021 9:40 p.m., CBS | (11 MW) | vs. (6 MW) No. 16 San Diego State First Round | W 78–62 | 17–9 | 30 – Boeheim | 6 – Girard III | 7 – Girard III | Hinkle Fieldhouse Indianapolis, IN |
| March 21, 2021 5:15 p.m., CBS | (11 MW) | vs. (3 MW) No. 13 West Virginia Second Round | W 75–72 | 18–9 | 25 – Boeheim | 7 – Guerrier | 7 – Girard III | Bankers Life Fieldhouse Indianapolis, IN |
| March 27, 2021 9:55 p.m., TBS | (11 MW) | vs. (2 MW) No. 6 Houston Sweet Sixteen | L 46–62 | 18–10 | 12 – Tied | 6 – Tied | 2 – Dolezaj | Hinkle Fieldhouse Indianapolis, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. MW=Midwest. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Final |
| AP | — | — | — | RV | — | — | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not released |
| Coaches | RV | RV^ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 25 |
*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings ^Coaches did not release a Week 2 poll.