Syracuse basketball completes its 2025-26 non-conference schedule with a game against Delaware State

While one game against Binghamton has not officially been announced, we now know 12 of the 13 non-ACC opponents for the Orange in this critical upcoming season, with game times and broadcast coverage still to be determined for 11 of those 13 contests.

Dec 28, 2024; Syracuse, New York, USA; Syracuse Orange forward Donnie Freeman (1) controls the ball against Bucknell Bison forward Ruot Bijiek (22) during the second half at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-Imagn Images | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Syracuse on Monday announced a game with Delaware State for the upcoming 2025-26 basketball season. The Orange and Hornets will meet for the first time when they face off Saturday, November 8 in the JMA Wireless Dome.

The 13 out-of-conference games are essentially set, with some blanks to still fill in.

Reports over the summer that Syracuse and Binghamton will meet during the upcoming season still have not been confirmed by the university, as they do not announce games until contracts have been signed.

Assuming Binghamton is simply awaiting an official announcement, 12 of SU's 13 early season opponents are now known. The only blank is the final game of the Player's Era Festival at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, following back-to-back matchups against Houston and Kansas in less than a 24 hour period.

That third opponent at the MGM Grand will also be quality competition, when you consider the rest of the field. It includes UNLV, Rutgers, Baylor, Creighton, St. John's, Iowa State, Auburn, Alabama, Gonzaga, Michigan, Maryland and San Diego State. Not to mention, a potential, albeit slim chance the Orange would face fellow ACC member Notre Dame.

With Delaware State set for Nov. 8, the same day the "Cuse football team is on the road to face Miami, it leaves the season's opening date of Monday, November 3 as a possible date for the Binghamton game, or perhaps Saturday, December 6 which sits open with no early conference game this season.

The other opponents for the upcoming season include Buffalo and Pace in exhibition games, Drexel at Philadelphia's Xfinity Mobile Arena. St. Joseph's at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, and Dome meetings with Monmouth, Tennessee (ACC-SEC Challenge), Hofstra, Mercyhurst, Northeastern, and Stonehill.

Meet the Delaware State Hornets

Members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conferenced (MEAC) residing in the state's capital city of Dover, the Hornets went 16-14/8-6 last season, good enough for third place in the MEAC, but more importantly, recorded their first winning season in-conference in over a decade.

Head coach Stan Waterman will be entering his fifth season at Del. St. in 2025-26, and he was rewarded with a three-year contract extension last month, keeping him as the school's head coach through the 2027-28 season.

While all-MEAC selections and the team's leading scorers, guards Martaz Robinson and Robert Smith have moved on, junior forward Kaseem Watson and sophomore guard Ponce James return to form the nucleus of experience for Waterman.

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