LOUDONVILLE, NY – Siena Basketball Head Coach Jamion Christian has announced the addition of four student athletes. Syracuse graduate transfer Braedon Bayer and freshmen Georges Darwiche, Robert Mahala, and North Alabama transfer Jimmy Ratliff are set to join the Saints' 2018-19 roster.
 
The four additions bring Siena's 2018-19 roster to a total of 17 student athletes, featuring seven newcomers including four true freshmen. Christian previously announced the signings of freshmen Jalen Pickett and Sloan Seymour and Mount St. Mary's transfer Don Carey in June.
 
Bayer becomes the first graduate transfer in Siena Basketball history. The 6-4, 190-pound guard from Lagrangeville, New York has enrolled in Siena College's new MBA program, and will have one year of eligibility remaining.
 
Bayer matriculated to Syracuse as a walk-on and sat out the 2016-17 season before earning a scholarship and appearing in nine games while totaling 17 minutes for the Orange this past year. He played a season-high six minutes down the stretch, registering a key block and a steal to help Syracuse earn a berth in the Sweet 16 with a 55-53 NCAA Tournament win over Michigan State.
 
Bayer began his collegiate career at Division III Grinnell College in Iowa, where he averaged 10.8 points, 4.1 assists, and 1.9 steals over 15.7 minutes of action in 34 games including seven starts spanning two seasons with the Pioneers (2014-16). He averaged 10.7 points and led Grinnell in both assists (4.4) and steals (48) during the 2014-15 season.
 
Bayer played his high school basketball at Trinity-Pawling School, where he captained the Pride to consecutive Tri-State League Championships his junior and senior years.
 
"Braedon brings tremendous toughness," said Christian. "He has a great reputation of making big plays at critical moments. We wanted to add some more senior leadership to the roster, and Braedon provides us with much needed help both on the floor and in the locker room."
 
Darwiche becomes the third scholarship true freshman in the Saints' Class of 2022, joining Pickett and Seymour. The 6-1, 175-pound guard from Bucharest, Romania, who attended Gheorghe Lazar National College, is a member of the Romanian National Team.
 
Darwiche was elevated to Romania's Senior National Team in 2017, where he averaged 3.7 points and 1.7 assists over 18.9 minutes of action in three games at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 European Qualifiers. Earlier in 2017, he led Romania to the U20 European Championship B Division crown, while averaging 7.0 points and shooting 42% from three-point range over 14.5 minutes spanning seven tournaments contests. He also guided the U18 squad to a Romanian League Championship in 2016 while earning Tournament MVP honors.
 
Darwiche recently completed his fourth season playing for Steaua CSM EximBank Bucuresti in Romania's top league, Divizia A. He appeared in 44 games (38 starts) during the most recent 2017-18 campaign, averaging 3.0 points and 1.5 assists, and posted a strong 2.37-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio while shooting 40% from three spanning 14.6 minutes per game.
 
"We're excited to have a point guard in our program who can make all the right decisions," commented Christian. "Georges has great international experience, and is someone who we believe can make an immediate impact on our program."
 
One of Siena's four true freshmen on the 2018-19 roster, Mahala joins the Saints as a walk-on. The 6-4, 160-pound guard from Jackson, New Jersey attended Christian Brothers Academy.
 
Mahala earned three varsity letters and was a two-year starter at CBA. This past season, he was named team MVP after leading the Colts to a 19-7 record and the Shore Conference Tournament semifinals. Mahala averaged 9.8 points as a senior, and was selected to play in New Jersey's North-South Senior All-Star Game.
 
"Robert is super athletic and a fun person to be around," explained Christian. "He brings a lot of enthusiasm, and does whatever it takes to make the team better. Robert possesses all the qualities to maximize his abilities."
 
Ratliff matriculates to Siena after spending a redshirt year at North Alabama, where he was named a Gulf South Conference Honor Roll selection while achieving a 3.53 cumulative GPA. The 6-8, 190-pound guard out of Middletown, Ohio joins the Saints as a redshirt freshman walk-on.
 
Ratliff previously played one season of prep basketball at Kingston Academy in Cincinnati, where he averaged 16 points and seven rebounds per game. He averaged 14 points, eight rebounds, and three assists as a high school senior at Middletown, where he was named a Second Team All-GMC selection after averaging 10.2 points and 5.7 rebounds during his junior season.
 
"We love big wings who can shoot the three and Jimmy gives us exactly that," noted Christian. "He has a tremendous reputation as a shooter, and we believe that he's going to make us better every single day and help us stretch opposing defenses."
 
The four newest additions join a Siena Basketball program which tips off its 2018-19 season on Tuesday, Nov. 6 at Providence as part of the Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament. Season tickets for Siena's 14-game regular season home schedule start at just $70, and can be purchased by contacting the Siena Fan Relations Management Center at (518) 487-2202, online at sienasaints.com/tickets, or by e-mail at sienatickets2@siena.edu.