Duke Blue Devils rally from halftime deficit to defeat Siena Saints 71-65 in NCAA men's tournament first round
The Duke Blue Devils, the No. 1 seed from the Atlantic Coast Conference, defeated the No. 16 seed Siena Saints from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference 71-65 on March 19, 2026, at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. The victory spared Duke from joining the rare list of top seeds to fall in the first round to a 16th seed, a feat accomplished only twice previously: UMBC over Virginia in 2018 and Fairleigh Dickinson over Purdue in 2023.[1][2][3]
Siena led 43-32 at halftime, shooting 55% from the field and 45% from three-point range, while Duke made just 2 of 15 three-point attempts. The Saints stuck exclusively with their five starters for all 40 minutes.
Duke outscored Siena 39-22 in the second half. Isaiah Evans' layup with 4:25 remaining gave Duke its first lead since early in the first half, 63-61. Siena closed to within four points late, but Gavin Doty missed a three-pointer with 28 seconds left.
Doty led Siena with 21 points (3-for-12 from three), four rebounds and two assists. Francis Folefac added 18 points, seven rebounds and two assists, while Brendan Coyle scored 12 points on 4-of-9 shooting.
Cameron Boozer paced Duke with 22 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, going 13-for-14 from the free-throw line for a double-double. His brother, Cayden Boozer, contributed 19 points on 9-of-16 shooting. Evans recorded 16 points and 10 rebounds.
The Blue Devils, coached by Jon Scheyer since 2022, advance to face No. 9 seed TCU, which beat No. 8 Ohio State earlier on March 19, in the second round on March 21.[4]
Bon Secours Wellness Arena, with a basketball capacity of approximately 10,200, has previously hosted NCAA tournament games.[5]
Sources
- NCAA.com, "UMBC makes history as first No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1", March 17, 2018, https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/2018/03/16/umbc-makes-history-beats-virginia-first-no-16-over-no-1-winner-ncaa-tournament
- NCAA.com, "Fairleigh Dickinson makes history, beats Purdue: Second No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1", March 18, 2023, https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/2023/03/17/fairleigh-dickinson-makes-history-beats-purdue-second-no-16-beat-no-1-ncaa-tournament
- NCAA.com, "Men's basketball tournament history: Every No. 16 vs. No. 1 game", accessed October 2024, https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/article/2024-03-21/every-no-16-seed-vs-no-1-seed-game-mens-march-madness-history
- Wikipedia, "Duke Blue Devils men's basketball", accessed October 2024, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_Blue_Devils_men%27s_basketball
- Wikipedia, "Bon Secours Wellness Arena", accessed October 2024, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bon_Secours_Wellness_Arena
