WASHINGTON, DC – Mayhem has officially been unleashed. Freshman Jalen Pickett scored a game-high 19 points and Kevin Degnan drilled five threes including a clutch triple late as Siena Basketball defeated A-10 foe George Washington 69-61 in the nation's capital for Jamion Christian's first victory as the Saints' head coach.

Pickett dished out six assists and added five rebounds for Siena (1-1) which held a 42-32 rebounding advantage, fueling an 18-8 margin in second chance points. Degnan posted career-highs of 15 points and eight rebounds, while shooting a stellar 5-6 from distance.

Justin Mazzulla led George Washington (0-2) with 18 points and eight rebounds, while Terry Nolan, Jr. added 17 points and nine rebounds.

The Saints led for more than 30 minutes, and went on an 18-6 run late in the first half to claim their biggest lead of the night at 36-25 with 2:25 remaining in the stanza. Siena would not trail again, and took a 39-32 advantage into the break. The Saints shot 8-15 from three in the opening half, and held a 20-11 advantage on the glass leading to a 7-0 margin in second chance points.

Degnan drained back-to-back threes to push the lead back to 10 at 55-45 with 11:06 left. But the Colonials responded with the ensuing 10 points to knot the score one final time at 55-all with 7:27 to go.

However, Evan Fisher connected on a short jumper on the next possession to put Siena back in front for good, and Degnan sealed the win with a clutch three with 1:17 remaining to extend the lead to 65-61.

Fisher finished with eight points and six rebounds for the Saints which snapped an 11-game road losing streak dating back to an 87-68 win at Bryant on Dec. 17 of last year. Manny Camper added nine points for Siena which tallied 13 threes to mark the second straight game with 12 or more to open the season. The Saints made 12 or more threes in a game just twice all of last season.  

Following a pair of games in just three days to open the 2018-19 season, Siena will now have eight days to prepare for their next contest. The Saints return to action with their third of four games in the Air Force Reserve Basketball Hall of Fame Classic presented by Citi when Siena takes on Norfolk State on Friday, Nov. 16 at 8:30 p.m. at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.