GREENVILLE, SC – Far from a cakewalk. Siena Basketball led for more than 28 minutes and by as many as 13 points, as the 16
th seeded Saints took No. 1 overall seed Duke down to the wire before falling 71-65 in an NCAA Tournament East Region First Round matchup at Bon Secours Arena.
Sporting News National Player of the Year and Atlantic Coast Conference Player and Rookie of the Year Cameron Boozer posted 22 points and 13 rebounds for Duke (33-2), which survived and advance to face No. 9 seed TCU Saturday in Greenville. Boozer shot 13-14 from the free throw line for the Blue Devils who were 18-21 compared to just 6-6 for the Green and Gold.
Gavin Doty scored 16 of his 21 points during an electric first half performance for Siena (23-12), which fell just short of becoming the third-ever No. 16 seed to upset a one. Doty finishes his sensational sophomore season at 991 career points – the most ever by any player in his first two seasons donning the Green and Gold – surpassing legendary fellow No. 4 Marc Brown who scored 970 from 1987-89.
Making the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 16 years, the Saints were not intimidated in the least bit by the stage nor the opponent.
Siena broke a 16-all tie with 10 unanswered featuring back-to-back Brendan Coyle threes followed by a pair of Francis Folefac buckets to claim a 26-16 lead at the 10:21 mark. The Saints expanded their advantage to as many as 11 and led 43-32 at the break, electrifying the small but mighty and deafening patch of Green and Gold in Bon Secours Arena.
Siena, which became the first-ever No. 16 seed to lead a No. 1 by double digits at halftime in NCAA Tournament history, shot 55% from the field in the opening stanza against the vaunted Duke defense which entered the day ranked third nationally in scoring defense (63.2) and ninth in field goal percentage defense (.392).
Meanwhile, the unheralded Saints defense – which entered play ranked 15
th nationally themselves in scoring defense (65.7) – held the Blue Devils to just 39% shooting in the first half, including only 2-15 from three.
Siena ultimately led by as many as 13 points, handing top-ranked Duke its largest deficit all season. The Blue Devils entered play outscoring their opponents by an average of 19.2 points.
The Saints led 47-34 with 18:24 remaining, as what started as a mostly partisan crowd of 13,919 at Bon Secours Arena quickly got drowned out by the Siena faithful and those neutral parties beginning to realize what was unfolding.
But the Blue Devils made their run. Duke responded with 11 unanswered to rally back within a pair at 47-45 with 14:17 left. The Saints didn't back down, and answered with consecutive Coyle threes to push the lead back to six.
However, the Blue Devils responded with a separate 11-0 run over 5:41 down the stretch to reclaim their first lead since the opening minutes, and take a 67-61 margin with just 1:36 remaining. Siena battled to the final buzzer, but ultimately fell to 6-47 all-time against AP Top-25 teams.
Just the third No. 1 team the Saints have ever played, Duke held Siena to just 24% second half shooting while registering a 30-13 rebounding advantage in the stanza.
Cayden Boozer scored 19 points and dished out five assists for the ACC Regular Season and Tournament Champion Blue Devils which recorded their national-leading 18
th win away from home (10 road, eight neutral). Isaiah Evans added 16 points and 10 rebounds for college basketball blue blood and five-time National Champion Duke which improved their record-best all-time NCAA Tournament win percentage to .751 (127-42).
Folefac tallied 18 points and seven rebounds for the Saints who fell to 4-7 all-time in NCAA Tournament action. Coyle scored 12 points on 4-9 from three for a Siena squad which made nine after entering play with the 16
th fewest threes made nationally (5.4).
Save for a defensive substitution with 10.8 seconds left, the Siena starting five did whatever it took, playing all but one second in falling just short of becoming the first team since DePaul in the 1979 National Semifinals to play its starting lineup for the entirety of an NCAA Tournament game.
Punctuated by nearly pulling off one of the biggest upsets in NCAA Tournament history, the Saints took a giant leap forward in Season Two of the Gerry McNamara Era, and the milestone 50
th Division I season of Siena Basketball. Siena returned to The Big Dance for the first time in 16 years, while also achieving the program's highest win total since that same historic 2009-10 season. The Saints smashed their win total from the previous two seasons combined, and their 14 wins away from home (nine road, five neutral) ranked tied for sixth-most nationally through Selection Sunday, and finished as the second-most in the program's 85-season history.
This postgame recap is proudly presented by
The Brothers that just do Gutters, a proud partner of Siena Athletics. Trust the team that always comes through – on the court and for your home.