POUGHKEEPSIE, NY – Siena Basketball is set for a primetime nationally televised showdown when the Saints battle I-87 rival and MAAC tri-leader Marist Friday night at 9 p.m. in Poughkeepsie, New York. 
 
Pat O'Keefe and Tom Crean have the nationally televised call of the game on ESPNU, which can be viewed by Spectrum subscribers in the Capital Region on Channel 370, and can also be found on DirecTV Channel 208 and DISH Channel 141. ESPNU can also be accessed through the ESPN app and online at espn.com/watch (subscription required). The "Voice of the Saints" Emmanuel Berbari and former Saint Conner Fenlon '12 will have the radio call of the game locally in the Capital Region on JAMZ 96.3 FM, with pregame coverage beginning at 8:30 p.m.
 
Siena (9-11, 4-5) will take another crack at trying to become the second program in conference history (Iona) to reach 350 all-time MAAC Regular Season victories, while also looking to reverse their fortunes against the top of the table and secure a signature win in front of a national audience. The Saints, who enter the weekend and the midway point of the conference schedule in a five-way tie for fifth-place in the MAAC Standings, are 0-4 so far against the teams currently in front of them, as well as winless in five tries vs. squads predicted to finish ahead of them according to the preseason poll.
 
Projected to finish second and currently in a three-way tie for first with Merrimack and Quinnipiac, Marist (15-3, 8-1) is off to the second best 18-game start in the program's Division I history (16-2 in 1995-96). The Red Foxes have won 11 of 12 since the calendar turned to December – albeit eight of which have been by single digits including four by just one possession – and return to the Hudson Valley following their second Western New York trip sweep in three seasons.
 
Siena has dominated the all-time series with their I-87 rivals, more than doubling up Marist to the tune of a 63-31 advantage. However, the programs have split the past eight meetings after the Red Foxes swept the regular season series last year for the first time in 17 years. Moreover, 13 of the past 15 meetings in Poughkeepsie have been decided by single digits and by an average of just 5.8 points.