LOUDONVILLE, NY – Four home games, three road contests vs. Atlantic 10 foes, and the Sunshine Slam highlight this season's Siena Basketball non-conference schedule. The Saints are also set to rekindle their rivalries with the Albany Cup (home) and Br. Ed Coughlin Franciscan Cup (away) showdowns as part of their 11-game non-conference schedule.
 
"Each and every year we want to challenge ourselves with the best possible schedule to grow our group, and this year is no different," said head coach Carmen Maciariello. "We're excited to have four non-conference home games this year for our fans, and are looking forward to the challenge of playing three A-10 teams on the road. The Sunshine Slam will also be a great opportunity for our fans down in Florida to come see us play."
 
The 11-game non-conference schedule features four home dates which, coupled with 10 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference games at MVP Arena, will give the Saints a total of 14 regular season home games for the first time in five seasons dating back to 2019-20. The full 31-game 2023-24 Siena Basketball regular season schedule will be released shortly with the announcement of the 20-game MAAC slate.
 
For the second straight season, Siena will face Holy Cross on Opening Night on Monday, Nov 6 at MVP Arena, matching the second-earliest calendar lid-lifter in program history (Nov. 5, 2019). The Saints prevailed 75-68 in last year's opener in Worcester. The programs, which are set to meet for the second year of a four-year series, will also be squaring off for the seventh time in seven seasons.
 
Siena then begins play in the previously announced 2023 Sunshine Slam with a campus site matchup at A-10 foe Richmond on Saturday, Nov. 11. The Saints will be making the program's first appearance in the Commonwealth of Virginia in a decade since traveling to Radford on Dec. 19, 2014. Siena and Richmond will be meeting for just the third time, having previously split a home-and-home series during the 1992-93 and 1993-94 seasons.
 
The Saints conclude a long weekend in the region with their second straight trip to American on Monday, Nov. 13 in Washington, DC. The programs are set to meet for the third time as part of a four-game agreement, which is slated to conclude in Albany in 2024-25. Siena has won six of the first eight all-time matchups – including the first two games of the current series – highlighted by a 64-61 triumph last Dec. 22 in the nation's capital. The Saints will look to continue their dominance over the Patriot League when they face Holy Cross and American early on in non-conference action, with the program having posted a stellar 101-55 (.647) all-time record vs. the 10 schools that currently comprise the league.
 
For the second straight season, Siena will head to Florida for a Thanksgiving Week Tournament when they resume action in the Sunshine Slam. The Saints will be hoping for similar success this time around after posting high-major wins over Florida State and Seton Hall to take Third Place at the prestigious ESPN Events Invitational in Orlando last Thanksgiving Week.
 
Siena is set for a pair of matchups in the Ocean Bracket in the Sunshine Slam, beginning with Central Michigan on Monday, Nov. 20 at 11:30 a.m. in Daytona Beach, Florida. The Saints captured both ends of a home-and-home in their only previous matchups with the Chippewas coming during the 1989-90 and 1990-91 seasons.
 
Siena will then face either Milwaukee or Stetson in the Ocean Bracket Championship (12 p.m.) or Third Place (8:30 p.m.) game the following day on Tuesday, Nov. 21. Both squads are coming off of successful 2022-23 seasons, which ironically enough saw Milwaukee defeat Stetson in the First Round of College Basketball Invitational in Daytona Beach. The Saints won their only previous matchup with the Panthers 75-58 on Dec. 3, 1994 at the Marquette First Bank Classic in Milwaukee, while the Hatters captured the only prior meeting with the Saints 80-71 on Jan. 8, 1980 in Florida.
 
Following four straight games away from home, Siena returns to the Capital Region for three of its next four non-conference contests beginning with the revival of the Albany Cup vs. crosstown rival UAlbany on Sunday, Nov. 26 at MVP Arena. This year's installment will serve as a true Siena home game, and is included in the 2023-24 Siena Basketball season ticket package. The Saints prevailed 75-62 in a neutral site showdown last Nov. 12 at MVP Arena in the first meeting between the programs following a five-year break in the series. Siena and UAlbany had previously met for 17 consecutive seasons in the Albany Cup from 2001-17, following the Great Danes' elevation to the Division I level. The Saints hold an 11-7 edge in the Albany Cup, and a 31-24 all-time advantage between the Capital Region rivals dating back to 1940.
 
Following the opening weekend of MAAC action to begin December, Siena continues its non-conference schedule with a second straight America East squad when they host Bryant on Wednesday, Dec. 6. The programs are set to meet for just the third time, albeit for the first time ever in Albany. The Saints prevailed in both previous matchups in Rhode Island in 2015 and 2017.
 
Three of Siena's final four non-conference games will come on the road, beginning with the rekindling of the annual Br. Ed Coughlin Franciscan Cup at St. Bonaventure on Saturday, Dec. 9. The sister schools are set to meet for the 13^th time since the trophy was devised by the schools' Presidents to commemorate the annual renewal of the rivalry, with the Bonnies holding a slight 7-5 advantage during that time.
 
Following the final exam period, the Saints' final non-conference home game features Cornell coming to MVP Arena on Tuesday, Dec. 19. Siena holds a 4-3 edge in the series after capturing the most recent matchup 89-78 in the 2016-17 season-opener in Albany.
 
The Saints will head into Christmas Break three days later with their second straight Ivy League opponent when they travel to Brown on Friday, Dec. 22 for a 2 p.m. matinee. The programs will be meeting for just the second time, after Siena took the initial matchup 99-79 in the Philly Hoop Group Classic on Nov. 28, 2009 in Philadelphia.
 
The Saints wrap up their non-conference schedule with their third A-10 road game when they make the short trip to UMass on Saturday, Dec. 30. The squads will be squaring off for the first time in nine years, dating back to the 2014-15 season-opener in Amherst. The Minutemen have won eight of the first nine all-time meetings.
 
Siena is in search of its second straight winning non-conference record after going 6-5 last season to achieve the program's first winning mark in seven years since going 7-4 during the 2015-16 non-conference campaign. Game times for all 11 non-conference games will be announced shortly.
 
2023-24 Siena Basketball season tickets starting at just $126 for all 14 home games including the Albany Cup are on-sale now, and can be purchased online through Ticketmaster or by contacting the Siena Fan Relations Management Center by e-mail at sienatickets2@siena.edu or by phone at (518) 487-2202 during traditional business hours. For more information on Siena Men's Basketball season tickets for the upcoming 2023-24 season, including a seating chart featuring pricing by section, log onto sienasaints.com/tickets. Individual game tickets will go on-sale in October.
 
Siena heads into the 2023-24 season looking to build off a program-record fifth consecutive top-three MAAC Regular Season record.