After its best season in program history, advancing all the way to the national championship game, Syracuse opens its season tomorrow against Rhode Island. The Orange has four returning starters but also lost four key contributors from last season’s team, including some big 3-point shooters.

Here are three storylines to watch as the season begins:

Will the Orange be able to rely on 3-pointers as heavily?
One of the biggest question marks surrounding this year’s squad is be its ability to rely on 3-pointers as heavily as it did last year. Head coach Quentin Hillsman said that his team has “no other choice,” but to shoot a lot of 3-pointers, after reliance on the 3-ball carried the Orange to the national championship game last season. However, the Orange lost two of its top three 3-point shooters in Brianna Butler and Maggie Morrison. The two accounted for 180 of the Orange’s 334 3-pointers on the season, and their absence will force the Orange to rely heavily on seniors Brittney Sykes and Alexis Peterson. Peterson’s 3-point percentage sat at nearly 31% last season, but Sykes’ posted a dismal 23%, a number that will need to improve for the Orange to thrive again from beyond the arc.

Can Alexis Peterson and Brittney Sykes carry Syracuse as one of the premier backcourts in the country?
At basketball media day, Hillsman dubbed Peterson and Sykes as the ‘best backcourt in the country.’ He asked rhetorically, “How are you going to guard that?” adding that the duo is All-American caliber. While there’s no telling how good they can be, both must weather the demands of 35 to 40 minutes a game in what’s likely a 35-plus game season. And considering Brianna Butler’s absence, Peterson needs to inch closer to 20 points per game, Sykes closer to 15, for any shot at ‘best backcourt in the country.’

Which player will step up for Syracuse?
With Syracuse losing so many key players from last year’s team, SU needs somebody to step up and fill a big role. Four starters — Peterson, Sykes, Briana Day and Isabella Slim — return, and the Orange has a few options. One of is Julia Chandler, the sophomore forward who played in 32 games last year. The other returning player is Abby Grant, as mentioned earlier. There are two guards who haven’t played yet — redshirt freshman Davida Dale and freshman Desiree Elmore — who could be promising, but it remains to be seen how much oppurtunity they’ll be given playing behind the nation’s best backcourt, at least according to Hillsman. And freshman Gabby Cooper is slated to start the season opener. Whichever young player manages to impress early could develop a stronghold on the position for SU.