Basketball Season Means Business On Marshall Basketball Season Means Business on Marshall

The Syracuse Men’s basketball season officially began Thursday, which means Marshall Street is going to get busy.

“We get packed. I mean there are people that have had season tickets that have been going on now for twenty years,” said Steven Papazedis, who manages Acropolis Pizza House & Restaurant on Marshall Street.

Marshall Street is located right next to the Syracuse University campus, thus making it a hot commodity on game days. It is full of restaurants and stores such as Acropolis, Varsity Pizza and Manny’s. These places get filled to the brim when Syracuse Basketball is in town.

For the lines, “I’ve seen it almost to Starbucks,” said Papazedis.

The city of Syracuse bleeds Orange. People love to come out and support the basketball team at the largest venue in college basketball: The Carrier Dome. The Dome can hold 34,616 fans for basketball games, which is 11,000 more than Rupp Arena in Kentucky, the second-largest basketball arena. 

A lot of seats means a lot of fans. And a lot of fans is exactly what Syracuse gets. Since the Carrier Dome was built in 1980, the Men’s Basketball team has placed in the top five for average attendance in the county. They average over 21,000 fans a game.

A lot of fans means the campus gets crowded. When those crowds need food, they head to Marshall Street.

Thursday’s game was only a preseason game, and the line at Varsity Pizza was nearly out the door.

“It’s kind of tradition I think. I mean you go, you eat, you have a couple of beers, and you enjoy the game after,” said Papazedis. “When I think of SU, I think of Marshall Street.”

Noble Smith Junior agrees.

“It’s convenient, it’s always open, the food’s great,” said Smith.

Noble grew up in Syracuse and knows Marshall Street is a must stop for fans.

“It’s a great atmosphere,” said Smith.

Fans want the full game day experience when they come to Syracuse, and Marshall Street is a part of that.