With the calendar turned over to 2019, the Siena women's basketball team opened conference play on Friday night. They did so in a big way, collecting a commanding 27-point victory over the Saint Peter's Peacocks by a final score of 84-57. The Saints would hit a season-high in field goals (33), rebounds (50), and assists (24), while tying a season-high in three pointers (9).
Siena would toss out the most assists in a game since they dished out 27 in a 79-44 win over Niagara on Jan. 26, 2006, and had their most rebounds and largest rebound margin in a game when they went +27 in a 63-36 win at Navy on Nov. 27, 2015.
Leading the offensive charge were redshirt seniors
Aaliyah Jones and
Joella Gibson, as Jones put up 15 and Gibson 12 on the night. Jones added seven rebounds, two assists, and a steal while Gibson chipped in with four rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Junior
Sabrina Piper quietly flirted with a triple-double, snagging 10 points, seven rebounds, and a team-high seven assists. Classmate
Maddie Sims also fell one point shy of her third straight double-double, grabbing 11 rebounds and nine points. Freshman
Hanna Strawn was strong from the perimeter, hitting three three-pointers and a jumper for a career-high 12 points.
Saint Peter's was led by Wil'lisha Jackson and D'Aviyon Magazine, as Jackson went 8-for-9 from the floor for 16 points, while Magazine with five three-pointers for 15 points on the night. Zoe Pero and Briyannah Richardson each fell a point shy of double-digits with nine points apiece.
Siena spread the ball around early, as they had six different scorers in the first frame. After only seven points over the first five minutes, the Saints used a three-pointer from
Margo Peterson to catapult out to a 16-12 lead after the first quarter.
The Saints continued to push the tempo right at Saint Peter's in the second quarter, as Gibson and Jones each made key defensive plays early in the quarter to force turnovers. On the scoring side, Strawn would hit a three-pointer midway through the quarter, followed by a pair of buckets by freshman
Amari Anthony on back-to-back possessions in the final two minutes. That would aid the Green and Gold to a 6-1 run to end the half, holding Saint Peter's without a field goal over the final 2:57 of the half and holding a 35-28 lead.
The third quarter saw Siena pull away and tie a program record with 31 points in the quarter. It would be the most points in a 10-minute span since 2015-16 when the NCAA changed to quarters. The last time Siena reached that mark was Feb. 8, 2017 in the fourth quarter in a matchup with Canisius. Jones had a big third quarter, pushing the Saints ahead as they continued their strong play on both sides of the ball to grab the win.
The Green and Gold outscored the Peacocks 46-22 in the paint, and snagged 25 points off turnovers. Siena also outscored Saint Peter's 31-5 in bench points.
The Saints return to the floor on Sunday, Jan. 6 as they return home to the Alumni Recreation Center to take on the Iona Gaels in their first MAAC matchup on their home floor. Tip-off for the game is set for 2 p.m.
