The Duke Blue Devils were one late-game surge away from suffering their most humiliating NCAA Tournament defeat ever. And while they ultimately eked out a 71-65 win over 16-seeded Siena, head coach Jon Scheyer treated it like a loss.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Scheyer admitted that he got thoroughly outcoached by Siena head coach Gerry McNamara. He said that the Saints were "more ready to play" than the Blue Devils were.
“GMac. He out-coached me. They were more ready to play," Scheyer/
Scheyer vs. G-Mac
Basketball fans were far more interested in what the game meant for McNamara's future than what it means for Scheyer's present. Scheyer and the Blue Devils can keep on dancing, but McNamara is now seen as perhaps the top coach available in the offseason coaching carousel.
"Hard to disagree with that. GMac had his boys ready to play. Syracuse should be calling his phone right now," one user wrote on X.
"Maybe Scheyer spent too much time on possible round 2 opponents?" another remarked.
"Syracuse needs to be at his door when he gets back," a third said of McNamara.
© Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images.
McNamara rose to prominence as a star player for the Syracuse Orange in the early-2000s. He parlayed that into a role on Jim Boeheim's staff for two decades before getting the Siena job. During that run, he got more than enough looks at Duke and every other ACC program to be about as well prepared as any mid-major could be to face them in the NCAA Tournament.
Will McNamara emerge as an elite coach in the 2026-27 season?
