The Siena Saints (15-4, 8-0) defeat the Manhattan Jaspers (7-11, 2-6) 83-68, defending their home turf for the 31st straight time. This 9th straight win is the longest for Siena under Fran McCaffery’s tenure, and it is the head coach’s 100th win with the program.

With Edwin Ubiles held out of the lineup due to back spasms, the Saints found themselves down by four points halfway through the first half. The Siena offense soon woke up, however, going on a 10-0 run starting at the 7:41 mark. The run was highlighted by 3-pointers by Kyle Downey and two 3′s from Clarence Jackson. The teams went into the half with Siena taking an 8 point lead, 39-31.

Alex Franklin (VIDEO) scored the first five points for the Saints to lead off the second half, adding to his dominant performance of 23 points. In typical Saints fashion, the offensive statistics were balanced. Ryan Rossiter contributed yet another double-digit effort with 19 points and 14 rebounds. Siena also had dual perimeter offensive weapons tonight as Jackson scored 15 points, and Downey put up a career high 16 points. Ronald Moore maintained his season assist average with 8 dishes.

Photo: Norbert Kosinski

Manhattan was never able to recover from their 8 point halftime deficit. For a short while they were able to stay within 8 to 13 points, before the game extended into a 20+ lead for Siena as the game was winding down. The Jaspers committed two intentional fouls on Saints players going to the basket. In the first half, Brandon Adams shoved Rossiter before he could connect on a layup. With 8:53 left in the game, Laurence Jolicoeur fouled Jackson hard as the junior went airborne. Rico Pickett, the MAAC’s current leading scorer showed why he has earned that mark with a 26 point game. Antoine Pearson also scored 10 points for Manhattan.