The NCAA Tournament selection committee did former Syracuse basketball star and Siena head coach Gerry McNamara no favors, putting the Saints against the event's overall No. 1 seed in the round of 64.
Siena (23-11 overall), in the Big Dance for the first time since 2010, is the No. 16 seed in the East Region, where in the first round the Saints will go toe to toe with top-seeded Duke (32-2 overall), the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season and tournament champions. The Blue Devils, deservingly, also are the 2026 NCAA Tournament's No. 1 overall seed.
GOING DANCING ‼️🕺@SienaMBB will face Duke in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament!#MAACHoops pic.twitter.com/PzIdUUOih5
— MAAC Hoops (@MAACHoops) March 15, 2026
McNamara is in his second term leading the Saints. Last Tuesday night, in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference ("MAAC") Tournament championship game, No. 3 seed Siena upset No. 1 seed Merrimack, 64-54, to earn that league's automatic bid to this spring's March Madness.
After guiding Siena to the Big Dance, McNamara is getting buzz as a potential candidate for the upcoming offseason's head coaching carousel. His former head coach at Syracuse basketball, Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim, says GMac should be a candidate for the Orange's head coaching vacancy.
The ACC is well-represented in the NCAA Tournament.
In the 2025 Big Dance, the ACC only had four schools make the field of 68, although Duke did get to the Final Four. This March, the ACC will have eight of its members dancing:
Duke, No. 1 seed in East Region (No. 1 overall seed)
Virginia, No. 3 seed in Midwest Region
Louisville, No. 6 seed in East Region
North Carolina, No. 6 seed in South Region
Miami, No. 7 seed in Midwest Region
Clemson, No. 8 seed in South Region
N.C. State, No. 11 seed in West Region (First Four)
SMU, No. 11 seed in Midwest Region (First Four)
Other teams that Syracuse basketball played in the 2025-26 campaign and will compete in the 2026 NCAA Tournament include:
Iowa State, No. 2 seed in Midwest Region
Houston, No. 2 seed in South Region
Kansas, No. 4 seed in East Region
Tennessee, No. 6 seed in Midwest Region
Hofstra, No. 13 seed in Midwest Region
This is fun: Bryan Hodgson, the rumored Syracuse head coaching candidate, and South Florida are the No. 11 seed in the East Region. The Bulls will first face the No. 6 seed, ACC school Louisville, in Buffalo, N.Y.
— InsideTheLoudHouse (@LoudHouseFS) March 15, 2026
One other note: South Florida and its head coach, Bryan Hodgson, are the No. 11 seed in the East Region and will play No. 6 seed Louisville in the round of 64. Hodgson is a rumored candidate for Syracuse basketball's head coaching job.