GREENVILLE, S.C. — The halftime score of No. 1 seed Duke’s game against 16th-seeded Siena in the NCAA Tournament South Regional on Thursday was other-worldly enough. The Saints led 43-32, the largest lead after the first 20 minutes by a No. 16 seed over a No. 1 in tournament history.
But this stat was nearly as mind-blowing. It seemed like a typo, or some sort of computer glitch. In building that lead over the shell-shocked Blue Devils, the five Siena starters played all 20 minutes in the half. As it turns out, that feat wasn’t mind-blowing at all. That’s what the undermanned Saints do, ever since injuries and academic issues reduced their roster to seven scholarship players.
Siena coach Gerry McNamara had no choice but to leave his starters in the game in the second half, too, and that’s what allowed the Blue Devils (33-2), on the strength of a late 11-0 run, to pull out a 71-65 victory.
When the game was over, and the media horde filed out of the Saints’ locker room, the players were surprisingly composed. While all dismissed the thought of a moral victory, they were proud to have represented their school. In this age of NIL and unlimited transfers, some pundits have posited that the so-called Cinderella — a double-figure seed knocking a single-digit seed out of the tournament — had gone the way of high-top canvas Converse.
But as No. 12 High Point proved earlier in the day by bouncing No. 5 Wisconsin from the tournament and Siena’s gritty performance reinforced, Cinderella isn’t at home mopping floors. She’s back at the ball.
“I think a lot of people are going to have respect for us now,” said 6-foot-5 sophomore guard Gavin Doty, who led his team with 21 points. “A lot of people didn’t know who Siena was. I think they will now. I’m truly grateful to be a part of this team. We battled adversity all year, and today we went up against the No. 1 team in the country with five guys.”
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Playing without injured starters Caleb Foster, a 6-foot-5 junior and Duke’s second-best 3-point shooter, and 6-foot-11, 250-pound double-figure scorer and rim protector Patrick Ngongba II, the Blue Devils were short-handed, too. They clearly weren’t used to it.
Not so for Siena (23-12), which won the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament as the No. 3 seed.
“We had guys playing up to 38 minutes a game throughout the season,” said 5-foot-11 senior guard Justice Shoats. “We’re built for that. It started from the beginning of the year. The way we were conditioned, the way we worked out in the weight room. We showed what we’re made of in this moment.”
There’s no doubt about that, but in the end, the Blue Devils, behind 22 points from Cameron Boozer and 19 from his twin Cayden — both of whom played 38 minutes — had just a bit more gas in the tank.
“We were fighting it toward the end,” Shoats said. “We just caught that little drought. It happens. It’s basketball. No moral victories, but the performance we put on today showed out for this university.”
Showing out for Siena was important for 7-foot, 240-pound graduate student Riley Mulvey, an Iowa transfer whose father and uncle were soccer and basketball stars, respectively, at Siena.
“We wanted to keep playing,” Mulvey says. “We didn’t want this season to end. We gave it our all. Everything we had. We weren’t scared. We can play with anybody in the country. And we proved it. It’s just … tough to go out the way we did.”
The returning players on the roster might suffer another loss soon. McNamara was a star player at Syracuse, which just happens to have a coaching vacancy after parting with Adrian Autry last week. Especially after Siena’s showing against Duke, McNamara, who led the Saints to a 23-12 record this season, seems like the no-brainer hire of the offseason.
Whatever McNamara decides, the Saints are grateful for the time they spent with him and for their One Shining Moment, even though they didn’t win.
“I love that guy,” Doty said. “What I love most about him is when you’re down and maybe you’ve lost a couple of games, he turns that into positive energy. He fights harder than anybody I’ve ever seen.”
Shoats, the Saints’ team captain upon whose shoulders McNamara heaped a load lesser players couldn’t bear, knows too well there’s another career move for his coach.
“I love him,” says Shoats, who played his first two seasons at Division II Lock Haven (Pa.). “I’m glad I was able to come to this university for two years, and I’m glad he was able to coach me. We’re gonna stay connected for the rest of our lives. I’m looking forward to what he’s going to do next.”
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