Steve Masiello did not run out to the nearest Duane Reade to buy out the store’s supply of antacid after being informed by The Post that his road opener as a Division I coach with Manhattan would be at Syracuse in an opening-round game of the 2011 NIT Season Tip-Off.
That pits Masiello, with zero road wins, against Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, with 510 home victories.
“Has that been decided?” Masiello asked. “Is that official?”
It’s official, he was told.
“Wow,” Masiello said. “What an honor. My first-ever college game was against Syracuse in Alaska, so it’s kind of ironic that my first road game as a coach would be against them.
“What an exciting environment. I think they’re going to be a top five team, right? And Coach Boeheim has forgotten more about the game than I’ll ever know. What a great opportunity for our program.”
Syracuse will be formally announced today as one of the four regional sites for the first two rounds of the tournament. The Orange will host Manhattan on Nov. 14. Albany and Brown will square off in the other first-round game. The winners play Nov. 16 for the right to go to renovated Madison Square Garden for the semifinals Nov. 23 and championship Nov. 25.
Manhattan expects to open its season Nov. 12 against NJIT, but that is not confirmed. Masiello, a former assistant to Rick Pitino at Louisville, replaced Barry Rohrssen as the Jaspers’ head coach.
“You want to get Coach Boeheim’s approval,” Masiello said. “You want to come out prepared and make a good showing. Syracuse. Wow.”