Dec. 5, 2009

Final Stats

ALBANY, N.Y. - Siena annihilated crosstown rival UAlbany 83-54 Saturday night in downtown Albany leaving 12,960 spectators with little doubt as to who the area's best college team is...again. Clarence Jackson scored a season-high 25 points and Ronald Moore rounded out a scintillating double-double with 13 points and 11 head scratching assists to pace Siena.

The Saints claimed the Albany Cup for the fifth straight season and eighth time in the nine meetings since the rivalry was rekindled at the Division I level in 2001. Siena (5-3) jumped UAlbany (3-6) from the start, scoring 12 of the game's first 14 points and led by double figures for the final 34 minutes. The Saints carried a 49-23 lead to the lockerrom and led by as many as 36 in the second half, cruising to its largest margin of victory against UAlbany in 63 years.

Siena's up-tempo offense was tremendous, but it was an aggressive, tenacious defensive performance that drew highest praise from Head Coach Fran McCaffery.

"Without question, our best defensive performance of the year," McCaffery said. Later he added, that his team "can't play much better than that."

The Saints shot 55% in the opening stanza and forced 12 UAlbany turnovers. By contrast, the Great Danes shot just 36% from the field in both halves. Jackson tallied 18 of his points during a red-hot opening half in which he added three steals.

The Saints' pressure defense finished with 14 steals, leading to 21 UAlbany turnovers.

Alex Franklin (14), Ronald Moore (13) and Ryan Rossiter (12) joined Jackson in double figures. Only Edwin Ubiles, a game-time decision who made 3-12 field goals for eight points, failed to reach doubles among Siena's starting five.

Will Harris led UAlbany with 17 points and Tim Ambrose added 12 as the Great Danes dropped their third straight contest.

The Saints return to action Monday when they open the MAAC schedule at Iona. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. from New Rochelle, N.Y.