The Siena Saints women's basketball team looks to build off a solid 67-61 win over Niagara on Saturday afternoon. They push forward in the final stretch of the regular season as they get set to face Canisius in Buffalo Friday night at 7 p.m.
Tune into Siena All Access on either video or audio, where
Joe Mixie and Steve Amedio will have the call for WVCR The Saint on today's radio broadcast. Click the corresponding links to follow along with today's game coverage.
Social media updates will be provided courtside throughout the day via the Saints' official twitter page @sienawomenshoop. Join the conversation by using the hashtag #MarchOn during the game.
Ten things to know for Friday's game versus Canisius:
- Along with Niagara, Canisius is one of two league opponents that Siena will only face once during the regular season this year. The 2018-19 season marks the final campaign that the MAAC will feature 18 league games, with the conference returning to a 20-game format for the 2019-20 season.
- The Saints got back in the win column Saturday afternoon, taking down Niagara, 67-61, to remain in the hunt for a top-5 seed in the 2019 MAAC Tournament. Redshirt-senior Joella Gibson led the way with a career-high 20 points, while junior Maddie Sims added 13 points and nine boards.
- The team scored 42 points in the paint in the victory, improving to 4-1 this season and 4-0 in MAAC play when producing 40 or more points down low.
- With Saturday's win, Head Coach Ali Jaques became the third coach in program history to ellipse the 100-win threshold, joining Gina Castelli (1990-2012, 336) and Joe Hogan (1980-85, 115) as Siena coaches to do so. Currently in her seventh year at the helm, Jaques holds a 100-116 all-time record.
- Siena has accumulated a 293-218 (.573) record in MAAC play all-time, including a 63-68 (.481) outcome under head coach Ali Jaques.
- Adding two assists to her total on Saturday senior Deja Rawls sits in 13th place all-time in the category with 302. Rawls needs 20 more helps to tie Siena Athletics Hall of Famer Gunta Basko (1999-03, 322) for 12th.
- Maddie Sims is now tied for 9th place all-time in program history in blocks with 87. The junior needs one swat to pass Bronwyn Tobin (87, 1996-00) for sole possession of ninth place and seven to tie Ann Marie Graney (1981-95, 94) for eighth.
- Maddie Sims currently leads all players in the MAAC in double-doubles, with six so far this season, including four in conference play.
- The second-most frequent opponent in program history, Siena is 50-25 all-time against Canisius. The team split last year's regular season series, winning the later matchup at home, 68-59, on Feb. 25, 2018.
- Junior Maddie Sims became the first Siena player to earn a MAAC weekly honor this season when she was named the conference's Player of the Week on Dec. 17. The accolade came after the Mount Laurel, N.J. native recorded her third double-double of the year, which propelled the team to a non-conference win over UMass on Dec. 16.