Syracuse will renew its basketball rivalry with UConn in an exhibition game this season

It looks like Syracuse basketball has decided on its three-game allotment of exhibition games for the upcoming season, and none of the contests will be played in the Dome.

After announcing a return to Buffalo's Key Bank Center for a meeting against Niagara on October 24, and the reports of a matchup against Gerry McNamara's former school Siena for a preseason game in Albany, on Tuesday, College Basketball Today's Jon Rothstein reported that the 'Cuse and UConn will meet in an exhibition game on October 13 at the 10,000 seat arena tucked inside the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Conn.

McNamara hinted about his desire to face Connecticut on a regular basis

Just over three weeks ago in an appearance with Syracuse grad Adam Schein on SiriusXM's Mad Dog Sports Radio, G-Mac did not hold back on his fervor to renew the UConn rivalry, citing back to his playing days against one of the Orange's fiercest Big East rivals rooted in the Jim Boeheim-Jim Calhoun coaching era, and his respect for Huskies two-time national title-winning coach Dan Hurley.

"I will talk to Danny this offseason," McNamara told Schein on June 1. "It's something obviously that both fan bases would love. “I despised UConn, and they despised me."

While the thoughts may have focused on scheduling a regular season game at a venue like Madison Square Garden (site of the most famous six-overtime game in 2009 between the schools), the reality of G-Mac having a virtually completely new roster in his first season back at SU, against a program that played for the national championship (again) this past April, makes an exhibition game a smart direction to go with the rivalry renewal.

The fan bases will have something to talk about, the game's outcome will not count in the standings, and the goodwill between the programs most likely means a regular season game is coming down the road.

It has been a minute since Syracuse and Connecticut last meet on the court

It was at MSG in November of the 2018-19 season that the two teams last faced off, in Hurley's only game coaching against SU, and just his third game overall as UConn coach.

The unranked Huskies responded with an 83-76 upset win over Boeheim's 15th ranked squad, in the 2K Empire Classic semifinals and despite Jalen Carey's 26-point outing for SU.

In fact, that 2018 game marked the third consecutive year that the two programs played at the Garden, with SU winning 72-63 in 2017, and dropping a last-second 52-50 game in 2016 when UConn was a member of the American Athletic Conference.

The last time SU played a regular season game in Hartford was 2013, its last Big East season, and the last time the Huskies played in the Dome was in 2012.

SUPPORT THE JUICE ONLINE

Follow us on Twitter @TheJuiceOnline, like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram @SUJuiceOnline and listen to our podcast.

Add us as a preferred source on Google