2006-2007 Season

Siena beats UAlbany in double overtime 76-75. Ubiles scores 20 points after hitting 4 from beyond the 3-point arc.

In a normal February game against Manhattan, Ronald Moore has his first double digit asst game with 10 dimes. This would be the first of many. Recap »

After losing two very close games to Marist earlier in the year, the Saints beat the #1 ranked Red Foxes in a semifinal classic and head to the title game for the first time since 2004. Recap »

Alex Franklin ends his freshman year with a bang by scoring 27 points on 10 out of 12 shooting in Siena’s 83-79 MAAC championship loss to Niagara. Recap »

2007-2008 Season

Siena defeats 20th ranked Stanford 79-67 at the Times Union Center. Franklin scores 14 points and Ubiles adds 11. Students and fans stormed the court after the win. Recap »

Josh Duell came up big on the road in Lawrenceville, NJ, hitting a three with 1.3 seconds remaining and capping an 11-2 run in the final 1:58 against the fiesty Broncs. Recap »

In the BracketBuster game the Saints went to Boise State to play the 20-win Broncos and crushed them 93-70. Franklin had a monster game with 30 points and 18 rebounds. Ubiles had 22 points and Moore had 9 assists. Recap »

Siena trounces Rider in the MAAC championship game 74-53. In a game known primarily for Tay Fisher’s six 3’s off the bench, Ubiles added 15 points and Franklin with 10 points. Recap »

For the program’s first NCCA tournament win since 1989, Siena upsets #4 seeded Vanderbilt 83-62. Ubiles scores 11, Franklin 10, and Moore has 6 assists for Siena. Recap »

2008-2009 Season

Siena plays their toughest schedule in school history. #12 Tennessee, Oklahoma State, #3 Pitt, and a Kansas team one year removed from a national title.

After going through the season not being able to beat any significant non conference teams, Siena defeats Northern Iowa 81-75 in their BracketBuster match up. In a balanced scoring game Ubiles scores 10 points, Franklin 9 points, and Moore 8 points. Even a kid made a $25,000 shot. Recap »

Siena gets revenge on Niagara from two years before by beating them in the MAAC championship game 77-70. Franklin puts up 16 points, Ubiles contributes 9 points, while Moore has 7 assists. Recap »

After getting bumped up to a #9 seed, the Saints beat Ohio State 74-72 in double overtime. Ubiles has 20 points and Franklin has a double-double performance with 10 points 13 rebounds. Moore has 11 points with his 7 assists, along with two of the most well-known shots in Siena history that extends the game into the 2nd OT where he then won it. The greatest game in Siena history Recap »

Siena took Rick Pitino and the #1 seeded Louisville to the brink, but lose a close game 79-72. All three players played well with Ubiles scoring 24 points, Franklin 19 points, and Moore with 10 assists. Recap »

2009-2010 Season

After opening up the season with a win against Tennessee State, Siena gets another victory over a solid Northeastern team 59-53. Ubiles scores nearly half the team’s points with 26. Franklin finishes with 9 points and Moore adds 5 assists in this low scoring game. Recap »

The Big Three end their career vs UAlbany with a nearly 30 point victory, 83-54. Ubiles doesn’t play much due to injuries but Franklin has 14 points while Moore puts up a double-double with 13 points 11 assists. Recap »

The seniors’ last victory together made them MAAC champions in a 72-65 defeat of Fairfield. Ubiles leads all scorers with 27 points. Franklin adds a double-double of 22 points and 12 boards. Moore contributes 9 points and 6 assists. Recap »

An end of an era came in the team’s opening round 72-64 loss to Purdue. Franklin scores 10 points and grabs 14 rebounds. Ubiles leads the team with 18 points, and Moore scores 14 points. Recap »

Who is Siena? Haven’t I seen this name the past two years in my bracket? This name is so familiar I should just pick them right? Yes, and yes.

It’s a great day in sports; it’s the day that you spend penciling in teams in your bracket, until you can’t even read through the erase marks. Many of you are here now doing your due diligence on the 2010 Siena Saints.

If your team is in, congratulations, and good luck, unless of course you’re a Purdue fan, in which case we wish bad things upon you, well, that was a little dramatic– we wish your team plays extremely poorly on Friday night. We mean like first half Purdue poorly.

Recent History

The 2008 Siena Saints dominated Vanderbilt in the first round as a #13 seed. Their 21-point win over Vanderbilt was the most lopsided #13 over #4 seed win since 1985. They would go on to lose to Villanova in the second round.

Last year, #9 Siena took #8 Ohio State to double overtime in the first round. This is where PG Ronald Moore got his name on the map, knocking down two crucial threes in the closing seconds of each OT. In the second round, they were right with Louisville with about five to go, but the #1 seed proved too much for Siena to handle.

This Season

Siena has since lost one starter and one bench player in each year, but this has not stopped them. The Saints attempted to schedule up again this season, but nobody wanted to play them. Siena had their chances for quality wins against 4 NCAA Tournament teams; they lost a close one against Temple, lost at Georgia Tech (without Ubiles), competed closely with Northern Iowa, and got smoked by Butler.

Siena simply dominated the MAAC conference this season. Including the conference tournament, the Saints were 20-1 this season. In their last three games, they have trailed by 6+ points at half and have come back to win, including an overtime victory the Championship game. Siena trailed by as much as 15 points in the first half. One thing is for sure, if you let this team hang around, they will come back– they are resilient.

The Starters

PG Ronald Moore
Moore leads the nation in assists, but more importantly, is the most clutch player perhaps in Siena’s history. Ronald may only be shooting 23% from three this season, but two of those three pointers have come in the closing minutes of the Saints’ past two games.

SG Clarence Jackson
Clarence is the three point specialist for Siena, but has proven that he has the ability to drive the ball to the hoop with authority.

SF Edwin Ubiles
Ubiles marks the top of Siena’s 1-2-2 press. He has great length, anticipation, and the most NBA potential on this team. Edwin appears to be finishing off his Siena career strong, shooting 47.8% from the field in his last five games. Ubiles can simply do it all.

PF Alex Franklin
Conference Player of the year, MAAC Tournament MVP, there is not much else you really need to say about Franklin, who has greatly improved his ability to put the ball on the deck and go one on one. Alex’s strength is not found anywhere else in the league, and he has proven he can match up with bigger Div. I talent.

C Ryan Rossiter
Ryan Rossiter is sometimes overlooked, but it is hard to overlook his presence coming into this game. He is 5th in the country, averaging over a double-double per game, 21 this season. Rossiter is the smartest player on this team, and fights for every rebound.

Quick Facts

• Location: Albany, NY
• Enrollment: 3,000
• 6th NCAA Tournament Appearance
• Siena has the second longest home court winning streak (38) in Division I

Catch the 2009-10 Siena Saints video highlights and more HD video at our video page.

Kudos to Ronald Moore.

I haven’t written much because my perspective has changed.  Actually, it’s a reflection of how my twenty year viewpoint as a Siena fan has changed over the past five months.

After Siena made their run in 1989, and went to the final four of the 1994 NIT, I was thinking about the future.  I thought Siena could become Lasalle or better.  Then Mike Deane left and we had to suffer the Bob Beyer years.

Once Paul Hewitt came and revived the program, the same expectations arose.  Then he left.

This year, as a direct result of their success last year, my views changed.  I decided to ENJOY the success, without delving in to possible future aspirations.

ESPN touted Siena (along with other major media) as a preseason top 25 team.  I drank the kool-aid.  I bought in to the hype.  After the losses in Orlando at the Old Spice Classic, though, I changed my attitude.  Immediately.  I don’t know why, but it happened.

I decided to enjoy the wins.  I went to half a dozen games, and listened to the radio broadcasts or watched the televised games on DVR when I couldn’t make it.  It completely changed my view as a fan.

We may lose head coach Fran McCaffery this time.  Perhaps he stays – he is almost 50 years old, and there’s no guarantee that even if he signs a multi-year million dollar contract at a big school like Virginia the odds are that he wins more and has more success at a school like Siena.

But like Deane’s and Hewitt’s departures before, I’m now used to it.  So I’ve focused on the players, and the current success, and had more fun this year than ever before as a Siena fan.

With luck, we’ll keep Coach Fran.  Without it, though, we return four incredible starters next year, we get to put in the offensive and burgeoning defensive skills of Clarence Jackson to the the starting lineup, and welcome a highly regarded recruiting class while developing underclassmen Owen Wignot and Kyle Downey and adding the abilities of Lasalle transfer Kyle Griffen.

The future is bright, but I am basking in the glow of the present.  Never before has a Siena team been this successful or well regarded in the national spotlight.  We’re finally being talked about in the same breath as perrenial mid-major successes as Xavier and Gonzaga.  While I had always aspired to attain the successes of those programs for the Siena base, though, I’m not as focused on it as I have been in the past.  The program is in good hands, and they’ll still most likely never have the financial resources of those schools.  So I’ve decided to soak this in, watch my DVR’d replays from the past month, and look forward to whatever happens in the future not with bated breath or unattainable expectation, but gleeful anticipation.

There is a silver lining here – in the unfortunate instance that Coach Fran decides to move on there will be a VERY talented veteran coach waiting in the wings who may be able to step in and take the reigns at what now has to be one of the most desired mid-major programs in the northeast.  Tim Welsh is being mentioned, which would bring instant credibility to the program.  Perhaps someone else steps in with the vision of Coach McCaffery to continue strong recruitment and scheduling to continue the evident success which the program currently possesses.  Perhaps Coach Fran stays.  If he does, my newfound Zen-like vision will enjoy much satisfaction.

But I won’t look to the future.  I won’t be sad if Fran leaves – I’ll wish him well and thank him for the memories.  What I will remember is a regular season win over Stanford, a blowout tourney win versus Vanderbilt, and a 27 win season which saw us play the big boys and beat a Big Ten team for the chance to take the best team in the country down to the wire.

I’ll enjoy watching Siena come from behind to take a four point lead over #1 Louisville with seven minutes left in regulation in the second round of the NCAA tournament.  I’ll thrill at jumping up and down like a ten year old with my best friends in the bar watching Ronald Moore hit his two legendary three point shots against Ohio State for the win.

But I will not worry about if Siena ever gets any more recognition again by the national media – they got it this year.  They’ve arrived.  The Siena College men’s basketball team is now where I had always envisioned it could be, and they are enjoying what I’ve always wanted them to be: a nationally recognized program.

Here’s to an unbelievable season by your Siena Saints.  As fans enjoy it, revel in it, spend your summer soaking it in.  It will be just as good next year possibly better.  But don’t worry about it, don’t fret – just enjoy it.  The program has arrived, and it will succeed.

I’ve never coached a game at Siena that he (Hasbrouck) didn’t start in. So it will be new foreign territory for me. But what I told the players after the game was he set the standard for how you work and how you prepare. And I think when you look at the junior class mark that you mentioned, the reason that they play with the intensity level and the determination that you just witnessed is because of the great senior leadership that we got from Kenny and from Josh Duell. So the standard has been set, and our intention, of course, is to keep the program moving forward. That said, we know it’s not easy. It’s not easy to win a regular season championship, a tournament championship, and to get back here. But we know what it’s like. We know what a phenomenal experience it is, and that gives you the incentive that you need to continue to prepare to get better and to reach your potential. We have a great recruiting class coming in, and I have great expectation for our team next year.

And Louisville Head Coach Rick Pitino‘s opening statement to the media:

Well, first I want to congratulate Siena. What I told our guys before the game is that Siena could compete in the Big East, be in the top half of the league, and I really meant it in watching them. … I said, guys, they’re not going to go away. I said they’ve played Tennessee, Oklahoma State, Kansas on the road. They’re not going away. And they didn’t, obviously. And they made some big defensive plays by slapping down and coming up with steals. And we could say it was our carelessness with the ball, but it was more their great plays. And you gotta give them all the credit in the world. … A lot of people said you press and this and that. And we knew our press was not going to create a lot of turnovers tonight. We wanted to wear them out so they didn’t shoot the ball well. But I wasn’t sure about our team. When people asked me how good they were, I couldn’t answer it honestly when we were down 4 and we had to make big plays offensively and we had to make big rebounds defensively. … I’m proud of them and my respect level for Siena was extremely high before the game, and it hasn’t changed. They’re a great basketball team.

1.) Ronald Moore controls tempo, turnovers and shot selection
2.) The Saints get production from everyone on the floor throughout the game, preventing the Cardinals from focusing their pressure on just one or two players
3.) Siena forces Louisville to work for points in the halfcourt, challenging shots and controlling the defense glass

There are some good points in this post on how Louisville is upset prone:

Louisville is a team that relies on creating opportunities to score with its defense.  If a team is somehow able limit its turnovers and convert a decent (not necessarily an excellent) percentage of its shots, Louisville could experience some problems scoring in the halfcourt.  Look back at their early season loss to Western Kentucky–a team that is built very similar to Siena, by the way–and see what happens to Louisville when their defense isn’t brilliant.

Siena will, rarely, have a decided advantage over a team at the free throw line. Siena shoots 66.4% good for 251th in the country but the Cardinals shoot 64.2% (302nd) from the charity stripe. To put that in prespective, only Syracuse and play-in game loser Alabama State are the only NCAA Tournament teams that have worst free throw percentages than the Cardinals.

This year, there is not a lot of separation between the top eight teams in the country and the next 30 teams. Louisville has proven to lay some eggs in the past this season with losses against NIT teams UNLV and Notre Dame as well as NCAA Tournament teams Minnesota and Western Kentucky.

Siena cannot rely on the three to win this ballgame, they shot 24 threes in the win over Ohio State, but they will need to convert better than 6 of 24 if they get forced into a zone again and have to settle for threes. Siena played a lot better on offense in the 2nd half and overtime periods when they were able to flash at the middle and use some hi-lo action to get the ball to Ryan Rossiter and Alex Franklin. It is clear Siena likes to score from the inside out, the more the Saints put the ball in the hands of their big men, the better shape they will be in. So expect more of that if you see more zone from the Cardinals, and expect Clarence Jackson to play more minutes and be unafraid to shoot.

Siena doesn’t have much to lose in this situation. If the Saints can keep this game as close as Morehead State was able to do in the first half, you have to wonder if the pressure of the NCAA Tournament will start to bear on the Cardinals with every free throw.

Siena is 1-0 all time against Louisville with a win in the 1953-54 season.

“We were never in the game mentally the way we needed to be,” Matta said after the eighth-seeded Buckeyes were bounced in the opening round for the first time since 2001. “We never had a flow, we didn’t rebound, we didn’t handle pressure.”

“Give Siena credit. They made some huge plays down the stretch and we didn’t do some things we needed to do.”

Jeff Goodman has high praise for Siena and Ronald Moore’s performance, even though it says “Craig Moore”. The NY Times has a recap of Siena’s dramatic victory and some comments on their The Quad blog:

One more thing about midmajors: Siena is the first Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference team to win games in the N.C.A.A. tournament two years in a row. With the Big Ten at 4-3 and the A.C.C. at 3-4, maybe it’s time to listen to the coaches like Niagara’s Joe Michalich, who told Pete Thamel after the bids were announced: “The beauty of this tournament is not Oklahoma State playing Clemson.”

Even though both games went to overtime, anyone without a rooting interest would have to agree that a little guy (Siena) against a big guy (Ohio State) had a lot more juice than two also-rans from big conferences (Florida State and Wisconsin) slugging it out.

Louisville wore down Morehead State and pulled away for a 20 point win. With their win the 1 vs. 16 matchup is now a perfect 100-0 for the #1 seeds. C.J. Brown thinks that, like Memphis last year, the free throw line will be the Cardinals achilles heel in this tournament. They will apply relentless pressure and see how the Saints can hang with the overall #1 seed.

#9 Siena shot 33% from the field, their lowest percentage of the season. Siena‘s 51 rebounds are a season high, 21 of those being offensive rebounds which is also a season high.

Alex Franklin (10 pts, 13 rebs) and Ryan Rossiter (16 pts, 15 rebs) both delivered double doubles and Rossiter hit all 6 of his free throws down the stretch. Evan Turner finished with 25 points to lead the Buckeyes.

Siena turned it over 21 times, more than #8 Ohio State‘s 19, but the Saints were able to make critical shots down the stretch late in this ballgame. All five starters scored in double figures and Moore made his only two three point field goals in the overtime periods.

Someone doubted, but there’s no doubt this is one of the best games of all time for the Siena program.

This is Siena’s 2nd straight tournament appearance, first time the Saints made consecutive appearances. Siena is now 4-4 all time in the NCAA Tournament. Siena will play #1 seed Louisville Sunday at 5:20. More to come…