Syracuse men’s basketball: ACC opponent previews part two

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – MARCH 03: Head coach Pat Kelsey of the Louisville Cardinals reacts against the Syracuse Orange at KFC YUM! Center on March 03, 2026 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) | Getty Images

With the Syracuse Football season starting to turn the wrong way, let’s take a look at some more ACC opponents in the college basketball world.

If you missed the first part of this series, go read it if you would like to see the changes made by: Boston College, California, Clemson, and Duke. Now let’s go over four more rosters in the conference.

Louisville Cardinals

2025-26 record: 24-11 (11-7 ACC, 6th in conference)

Incoming Transfers: LJ Wells (5th year F from Northern Kentucky), Seth Trimble (5th year G from North Carolina), Gabe Dynes (Sr. C from USC), De’Shayne Montgomery (Sr. G from Dayton), Alvaro Folgueiras (Sr. F from Iowa), Jackson Shelstad (Sr. G from Oregon), Flory Bidunga (Jr. F from Kansas), Karter Knox (Jr. G from Arkansas)

Incoming Freshmen: Obinna Ekezie Jr. (four-star C), Boyuan Zhang (four-star F), Isaac Ellis (G)

Departures: Ryan Conwell (18.8 PPG), Mikel Brown Jr. (18.2 PPG), J’Vonne Hadley (11.5 PPG), Isaac McKneely (10.9 PPG), Sananda Fru (9.0 PPG), Khani Rooths (5.3 PPG), Kobe Rodgers (3.3 PPG), Aly Khalifa (3.3 PPG), Vangelis Zougris (2.6 PPG), Kasean Pryor (2.2 PPG), Mouhamed Camara (redshirt)

Returners: Adrian Wooley (8.7 PPG)

Player to look out for: Flory Bidunga. The amount of talent that Pat Kelsey was able to bring in this offseason is unbelievable, but if I had to pick one key player it would have to be Bidunga. The main thing that the Cardinals were missing last season was a dominant big man, and the Kansas transfer is one of the best in the country coming into this season. Having that kind of body and presence down low will be a huge help to Louisville in their hunt for a national championship.

Wells and Trimble are in the 5-in-5 case in Jefferson County, Kentucky

Florida State Seminoles

2025-26 record: 18-15 (10-8 ACC, 8th in conference)

Incoming Transfers: Cooper Schwieger (Sr. F from Wake Forest), Anthony Robinson II (Sr. G from Missouri), Kameron Taylor (Jr. G from UNC Asheville), Sebastian Rancik (Jr. F from Colorado), Amare Robinson (So. G from Tallahassee State College), Shon Abaev (So. F from Cincinnati),

Incoming Freshmen: Marcis Ponder (four-star C), Martay Barnes (four-star G), Brandon Bass Jr. (four-star G), Collin Paul (three-star F), Jasen Lopez (three-star G), JD Jones (G), Elisee Assui (G)

Departures: Robert McCray V (16.3 PPG), Chauncey Wiggins (13.3 PPG), Lajae Jones (12.7 PPG), Martin Somerville (8.0 PPG), Kobe MaGee (7.9 PPG), Alex Steen (6.8 PPG), Thomas Bassong (5.9 PPG), Cam Miles (5.4 PPG), Shah Muhammad (2.6 PPG), Alier Maluk (1.6 PPG), Maximo Garcia-Plata (redshirt)

Returners: AJ Swinton (4.5 PPG), Jalen Crawford (1.0 PPG)

Player to look out for: Sebastian Rancik. Florida State is getting a very talented big man in Rancik. He is able to stretch the floor with his shooting as well as make plays in space. He possesses a premium mix of skills at his size that will help the Seminoles this season in a push for madness.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

2025-26 record: 11-20 (2-16, 18th in conference)

Incoming Transfers: Jackson Fields (RS-Sr F from West Virginia), Colby Garland (Sr. G from San Jose State), Nasir Whitlock (Sr. G from Lehigh), Victor Valdes (Sr. F from Troy), Courtland Muldrew (So. G from Washington), Jackson McVey (RS-Fr. C from Georgia), Tylis Jordan (RS-Fr. F from Ole Miss)

Incoming Freshmen: Kayden Allen (four-star G), Moustapha Diop (four-star C), Kaiden Bailey (three-star G), Haiden Harper (G), Ilja Kurucs (F), Cody Cross (G)

Departures: Kowacie Reeves Jr. (15.1 PPG), Baye Ndongo (11.8 PPG), Akai Fleming (10.4 PPG), Jaeden Mustaf (10.4 PPG), Mouhamed Sylla (9.6 PPG), Lamar Washington (9.6 PPG), Chas Kelley III (4.3 PPG), Peyton Marshall (3.3 PPG), Eric Chatfield Jr. (2.6 PPG), Davi Remagen (1.6 PPG), Brandon Stores Jr. (redshirt), Dyllan Thompson (redshirt)

Returners: Kam Craft (7.3 PPG), Cole Kirouac (1.7 PPG)

Player to look out for: Kam Craft. First year head coach Scott Cross is coming into this ACC looking to take the Yellow Jackets out of the bottom of the standings, with Craft being a main part of that journey. Craft’s experience in the conference with the Yellow Jackets last year will be a good starting point for this team.

Miami Hurricanes

2025-26 record: 26-9 (13-5, 3rd in conference)

Incoming Transfers: Brent Bland (RS-Sr. G from Saint Peter’s), Egor Ryzhov (Sr. C from Russia), Quin Berger (Sr. G from Bucknell), Nick Dorn (Sr. G from Indiana), L.J. Cason (Jr. G from Michigan), DeSean Goode (Jr. F from Robert Morris), Somto Cyril (Jr. C from Georgia), Acaden Lewis (So. G from Villanova)

Incoming Freshmen: Caleb Gaskins (five-star F), Chris Birden Jr. (F),

Departures: Malik Reaneau (18.9 PPG), Tre Donaldson (16.4 PPG), Tru Washington (11.9 PPG), Ernest Udeh Jr. (6.7 PPG), Timotej Malovec (4.2 PPG), Noam Dovrat (3.8 PPG), Salih Altuntas (1.6 PPG), John Laboy II (1.2 PPG), Jordyn Kee (0.4 PPG), Treyvon Maddox (redshirt)

Returners: Shelton Henderson (13.8 PPG), Dante Allen (6.6 PPG), Marcus Allen (5.3 PPG, out for 2026-27 season with torn ACL)

Player to look out for: Somto Cyril. After an impressive 2025-26, Miami lost their best player in Malik Reaneau (currently ineligible), but Cyril will be the big man to take over in his place. Coming in from Georgia, he will bring some power five conference experience with him that will make him one of the best bigs in the entire ACC under Jai Lucas.

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What are your thoughts on this group of ACC teams?