April 24, 2003

Siena College held its annual Men's Basketball Banquet on Thursday evening, April 24, 2003 at the Albany Marriott on Wolf Road. With Capital News 9 sportsanchor Damian Andrew serving as emcee, over 250 fans and alumni who attended recognized the team that went 21-11 and received the program's fourth postseason invitation in the last five years. The event will air on Time Warner Cable next week at times and dates still to be determined.

Coaches and administrators, including Siena President Fr. Kevin Mackin, OFM and Vice-President Fr. James Toal as well as local dignitary Senator Neil Breslin were in attendance to pay tribute to the two graduating seniors and the annual award winners. The Dan Cuhna Defensive Player Award was presented to junior Justin Miller for the second consecutive season. Miller shared the award with Tommy Mitchell last season. Renowned as one of the best post defenders in the league, Miller led the Saints in blocked shots (34) and was fourth on the team in rebounds (4.8/game) and steals (29).

Sophomore Tommy Mitchell won the Jim Sullivan Most Improved Player award. Mitchell improved his scoring average by 9.0 points per game-the second best improvement in the MAAC this season. He started 26 of Siena's 32 games, and finished third on the squad with 2.1 assists per contest.

Athletic Academic Advisor Michelle Bronner presented the Rev. Benjamin Kuhn, OFM Student Athlete Award to senior Michael Buhrman. Buhrman holds a 3.71 grade point average as an accounting major.

The Billy Harrell Rebounder Award was presented to freshman standout Michael Haddix. Haddix had arguably the best season by a freshman in program history, finishing as the all-time leading rookie scorer with 13.8 points per game (440 total). His team-best rebounding total of 7.2 boards per contest was the most by a Saint since Lee Matthews 1992-93 total and the highest freshman total since Steve McCoy pulled down 8.6 rebounds per game during his initial season with the Saints in 1985-86.

Senior Prosper Karangwa was presented with the Doc Marcelle Most Valuable Player Award. Karangwa, the lone senior on the MAAC's First Team, led Siena with 16.6 points and five assists per contest. His 6.4 rebounds per game were second only to Haddix, and his 34.5 minutes per game were again the most on the team.

Athletic Director John D'Argenio also recognized Hon. Steve Ferradino '63 and his late wife Pat, with the annual Howard J. Tucker award for their contributions to Siena Basketball. The banquet culminated with seniors Michael Buhrman and Prosper Karangwa addressing the crowd, along with senior manager Pat Armstrong.

The Siena Athletic Department will recognize the Women's Basketball program on Sunday, April 27 at the Desmond Hotel in Colonie at 4 p.m.