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The college basketball season will start Nov. 25, the NCAA announced Wednesday evening. Teams can schedule up to 25 games depending on whether they participate in a “multiple-team event,” and must complete in 13 to be eligible for the NCAA Tournament.

Starting Oct. 14, programs can conduct a maximum of 30 preseason practices over 42 days — with a limit of four hours per day — until the season begins. Schools will also have a “transition period” from Sept. 21 until Oct. 13, according to the NCAA’s release, where they can conduct 12 hours per week of strength and conditioning workouts, among other meetings.

By pushing back the first games until right before Thanksgiving, the NCAA ensured that most schools will be finished with their in-person semester. Syracuse, which is following an accelerated schedule that includes weekend classes, will send all students home Nov. 24.

“The new season start date near the Thanksgiving holiday provides the optimal opportunity to successfully launch the basketball season,” NCAA Senior Vice President of Basketball Dan Gavitt said in a release. “It is a grand compromise of sorts and a unified approach that focuses on the health and safety of student-athletes competing towards the 2021 Division I basketball championships.”

Last week, Gavitt said that by Thanksgiving week, 76% of schools will have either finished their fall semesters completely or have sent home students.

But under the updated NCAA guidelines, Syracuse can’t schedule preseason exhibitions as it traditionally has. In 2018, those games came against the College of St. Rose and Le Moyne College, and last year the Orange defeated Daemen and Carleton.

The Orange’s first regular season game was initially scheduled for Nov. 10 against UMBC in the Carrier Dome. Other games against Green Bay (Dec. 8), Jacksonville (Dec. 10) and Mercer (13) were already announced. SU is also reportedly participating in the Gotham Classic, which would include a game against LSU in Madison Square Garden.

Published on September 16, 2020 at 8:28 pm

Contact Andrew: arcrane@syr.edu | @CraneAndrew