For the first time since Jim Boeheim took over in 1976, the Syracuse basketball program will undergo a real coaching search. At the end of Boeheim’s historic run, Adrian Autry was elevated from associate head coach, but his tenure came to an end after posting a 15-17 record this season.
Yet, despite Syracuse finally having a clean slate, the program may be enticed to hire another Boeheim disciple, who, like the legendary coach, played his college ball for the Orange, Gerry McNamara.
On Thursday, McNamara led his Siena Saints to become the first 16-seed to lead a No. 1 seed by double digits at halftime before they finally ran out of gas in a 71-65 loss. After winning the MAAC in his second year as a head coach, the upset scare will be a major point in his favor as a candidate for the open Syracuse job, as will Duke head coach Jon Scheyer’s comments after the game.
"G-Mac, he outcoached me."
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 19, 2026
Jon Scheyer told @TracyWolfson that there's a lot Duke can learn from this game. pic.twitter.com/DHUzWEkMRM
Gerry McNamara keeps bolstering his case to replace Adrian Autry
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After Duke managed to escape in Greenville on Thursday, Scheyer admitted that McNamara out-coached him. The 42-year-old former national champion played all five of his starters 40 minutes, only subbing in Christian Jones off the bench for the final few seconds. That bold strategy, aided by the longer commercial breaks and extended halftime of March Madness, nearly carried McNamara to a historic upset.
McNamara also found ways to exploit the absence of Duke’s starting center, Patrick Ngongba, and in the first half, Siena outscored Duke in the paint 22-16. With a mix of double-teams, zone, and straight-up man-to-man, Siena held the national player of the year, Cameron Boozer, to 4-11 shooting with five turnovers, though he did finish with a game-high 22 points courtesy of 13 made free throws.
Against Syracuse, with ACC athletes, Boozer also scored 22 points, but on 8-10 shooting with 12 rebounds and no turnovers in a 101-64 Duke victory. Scheyer decidedly outcoached Autry in that regular-season matchup, as he has every time he’s faced the Orange as a head coach.
In four years, Scheyer is 4-0 against Cuse with one win over Boeheim and three over Autry. Those wins have come by an average of 27 points.
Duke is the class of the ACC, the bar Syracuse has to reach. It was a one-off game that Duke clearly wasn’t taking seriously in the first half. But McNamara was severely outgunned and still traded blows with Scheyer. That’s not a reason to hire an inexperienced head coach to save a flailing program, but it’s not nothing either.