The 2026-27 season continues Monday evening as IU basketball takes on Syracuse at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
The Orange, led by coach Gerry McNamara, are 2-0 with wins against New Haven and Central Connecticut. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
Game information
Who: Indiana (2-0) vs. Syracuse (2-0)
Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
When: Monday, November 9, 2026. 6:30 p.m. EST
TV: FS1, Connor Onion (Play-by-Play), Bill Raftery (Analyst)
Radio: Don Fischer (Play-By-Play), Errek Suhr (Analyst)
All-time series: Syracuse leads 6-1
Last meeting: Syracuse 112, Indiana 110 (2OT) on November 30, 2021 at Syracuse
The line: Indiana -4.5, O/U 147.5 (DraftKings)
KenPom prediction: Indiana 76, Syracuse 71 (70 percent chance of an IU win)
After two tune-up wins against Eastern Illinois and Bellarmine at Assembly Hall, Indiana plays its first high-major opponent this season on Monday night in Indianapolis.
Syracuse made a coaching change in the offseason, hiring McNamara to replace Adrian Autry, who was dismissed after three seasons and no NCAA tournament appearances.
Expectations are modest for Syracuse entering the season. The Orange began the season ranked No. 81 in KenPom.com and were picked to finish 11th in the ACC in the preseason media poll.
Meet the Orange
The 2026-27 Syracuse roster blends retention, players McNamara brought from Siena, freshmen and transfer portal additions.
One of the program’s key additions, Temple transfer guard Aiden Tobiason, hasn’t played since the program’s first exhibition against UConn due to a hamstring injury. Tobiason will not play against the Hoosiers, according to McNamara.
Even without Tobiason, Syracuse has a strong mix of guard and wing talent, along with a capable post defender to anchor the middle.
New York native Gavin Doty, a standout at Siena over the previous two seasons under McNamara, is off to a strong start for the Orange through two games. The 6-foot-5 junior attacks aggressively off the dribble and got to the line 183 times in 35 games last season at Siena. While not known for his 3-point shooting – he made 32.6 percent of his triples last season – Doty made 46 3s a season ago and is 4-for-8 from deep this season. Through two games, he’s averaging 16 points to lead Syracuse.
McNeese transfer Garwey Dual, who also stops at Seton Hall and Providence, is a 6-foot-5 guard with a 7-foot wingspan. Through two games, the senior is averaging 7.5 points and three assists in 21.5 minutes per game. A high-major talent, Dual ranked as the No. 40 in the final 247Sports Composite rankings for the 2023 class. Dual spent three seasons at Carmel High School before finishing his prep career at Southern California Academy.
Freshman Mark Morano, a 6-foot-6 forward from Slovenia, has started the first two games and is 7-for-17 on 3-pointers. Morano had 16 points in Syracuse’s most recent game, a 102-49 beatdown of Central Connecticut.
Sophomore Sadiq White is the only returnee from last season in the current starting lineup. The IMG Academy product was a key piece for McNamara to retain. An elite athlete, White is averaging 11 points, 10 rebounds and two blocked shots in 23.5 minutes per game. He was a top 30 player nationally in the 2024 class.
Luke Wilson, a 6-foot-10, 255-pound junior center, was the Sun Belt defensive player of the year last season. Wilson blocked 59 shots last season at App State and had 12 double-doubles. He shot 62.1 percent last season and had the nation’s highest free-throw rate at 122.4 percent. He shot only 56.3 percent from the line.
It’s unclear how deep McNamara will go into his deep once the competition stiffens – Syracuse fans will find out this week when the program plays IU and St. John’s – but the most likely contributors are freshman guard Ryan Moesch, senior wing Amarri Monroe, sophomore Kiyan Anthony, senior Tasman Goodrick and sophomore Francis Folefac.
Moesch, a 6-foot guard, was signed with Siena but chose to follow McNamara to Syracuse. The left-handed guard is just 1-for-11 from the field in his first two games.
Monroe, a 6-foot-7 forward, is in his fifth season after previous stops at Wofford and Quinnipiac. Like Sam Alexis, Monroe is currently eligible after a court ruling granted him a fifth season of eligibility. He’s coming off a strong performance against Central Connecticut, where he finished with eight points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals in 18 minutes.
Anthony, the son of former Syracuse star and Hall of Famer Carmelo Anthony, is off to a strong start in his second season. Wired to score, the 6-foot-5 Anthony had 17 points in the opener against New Haven and 14 against Central Connecticut.
Goodrick provides legitimate size as the backup five at 6-foot-10 and 240 pounds. Folefac, an undersized forward who started last season at Siena, averaged 11.3 points and 5.3 rebounds for the Saints but did not play in the opener and logged only five minutes against Central Connecticut.
Keys to the game
• Win the rebounding battle: Darian DeVries built this Indiana team to end possessions on the defensive glass and generate extra opportunities on the offensive glass. Monday’s game will be a test, as Syracuse has legitimate size and athleticism. Will the rebounding dominance IU showed in exhibition play and through the first two regular-season games continue?
• Take care of the ball: It may sound simplistic, but Syracuse has plenty of length across its lineup and is going to try to force IU into tough, contested looks. Knowing that the offensive glass can be a weapon for the Hoosiers, taking care of the ball and avoiding unforced mistakes is pivotal.
• Do the job defensively on Doty: IU fans got a chance to see Doty in action last season at Assembly Hall when he scored 16 points in an 81-60 Hoosier win against Siena. Last season, he averaged 18 points and 6.9 rebounds while leading Siena to an NCAA tournament berth. Siena gave Duke a scare in the NCAA tournament before falling 71-65. Jaeden Mustaf will likely draw the assignment on the Syracuse star but the Hoosiers will need a total team effort defensively to make him earn every bucket.
What it comes down to
The KenPom projection is Indiana by five with a 70 percent chance of a win. Bart Torvik’s ratings favor the Hoosiers by six with a 69 percent chance of a Hoosier victory.
Indiana has a game in Indianapolis at Gainbridge Fieldhouse under its belt, but the Hoosiers will need a strong performance to win.
This game is one of five non-conference games against high-major competition for IU. On paper, Syracuse is the lowest-rated of those five opponents, but the Orange have talent, will play hard and will be well prepared under McNamara’s leadership.
