Syracuse basketball will travel to Georgetown, non-conference is complete

Syracuse basketball and Georgetown will continue their storied rivalry this December, SU Athletics announced on Thursday.

The Orange will travel to our nation’s capital to battle those pesky Hoyas on Saturday, Dec. 9, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.

There had been reports swirling around in recent months that the ‘Cuse and Georgetown would play during the non-conference portion of the 2023-24 season, and now that speculation is official.

With this game officially announced, the Syracuse basketball non-conference docket in 2023-24 is now wrapped up, although the Orange’s three opponents in Maui, Hawaii, near the Thanksgiving holiday are to be determined.

Syracuse basketball and Georgetown have played one another dating back more than 90 years.

When the ‘Cuse and the Hoyas go toe to toe this December, both programs will feature first-year head coaches on the sidelines. Adrian Autry took over for the Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim this past March at the helm of the Orange, while in that same month, Georgetown announced that former Providence boss Ed Cooley would replace Patrick Ewing as the Hoyas’ head coach.

Georgetown was simply dreadful in the 2022-23 campaign, sporting a 7-25 overall record and a 2-18 mark in Big East Conference competition. Syracuse basketball, meanwhile, went 17-15 a stanza ago, missing the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row.

In their long all-time series together, the Orange holds a 53-45 advantage over Georgetown, according to SU Athletics. They first met in 1930. Last season, inside the JMA Wireless Dome, Syracuse basketball took care of the Hoyas, 83-64.

While Georgetown has struggled in recent terms, I think that Cooley will turn things around for the Hoyas. Already, in recent months, he has fared quite well on the recruiting trail, with some of his commitments including former ‘Cuse targets Caleb Williams, a 2024 four-star wing from Washington, D.C., and Thomas Sorber, a 2024 four-star center from Philadelphia.

Even though Georgetown remains in the Big East, while Syracuse basketball is a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, I’m encouraged and excited that these two programs continue to schedule non-conference encounters.

Here’s the full 11-game non-conference calendar for Syracuse basketball in 2023-24.

•New Hampshire at the Dome on Monday, Nov. 6

•Canisius at the Dome on Wednesday, Nov. 8

•Colgate at the Dome on Tuesday, Nov. 14

•Three TBD opponents at the 2023 Maui Jim Maui Invitational in Maui, Hawaii, from Monday, Nov. 20, until Wednesday, Nov. 22 (the eight-team field consists of the Orange, Gonzaga, Kansas, Marquette, Purdue, Tennessee, UCLA and Chaminade)

•LSU at the Dome on Tuesday, Nov. 28 (ACC/SEC Challenge)

•Cornell at the Dome on Tuesday, Dec. 5

•Georgetown on the road on Saturday, Dec. 9

•Oregon in Sioux Falls, S.D., on Sunday, Dec. 17

•Niagara at the Dome on Thursday, Dec. 21

If my math is correct, during its 2023-24 non-conference, Syracuse basketball will have six home games, four neutral-site affairs and one true road contest.