ALBANY, NY – Siena Basketball entered the 2025-26 season with lofty expectations, and through the first 40 minutes showed signs of what might be in store. The Saints led throughout and by as many as 21 points while dispatching defending America East Regular Season and Tournament Champion Bryant 82-66 on Opening Night at MVP Arena.
 
Gannon transfer Tasman Goodrick, who ranked second nationally last season at the Division II level with 20 double-doubles, wasted no time in securing his first in a Siena (1-0) uniform with a dominant 22-point, 11-rebound performance on 11-14 shooting in his DI debut. Preseason First Team All-MAAC selection Justice Shoats added 17 points and nine assists for the Saints which have won six of their last seven season-openers.
 
Timofei Rudovskii scored 15 points on 5-6 shooting including a perfect 3-3 from distance for Bryant (0-1) which shot 10-22 from three. Reserves Aaron Davis and Khalil Williams added 14 and 12 points off the bench, respectively, for Jamion Christian who made his Bulldogs head coaching debut. Christian returned to the Capital Region after serving as the 17^th head coach in Siena Basketball history during the 2018-19 season.   
 
Siena tipped off its milestone 50^th Division I season on a 13-2 spurt and never looked back. Bryant never got any closer than five thereafter, as the Saints claimed a 39-31 lead at the break.
 
Siena led by double digits for nearly the entirety of the second half, and rattled off eight straight to open as much as a 71-50 advantage with 7:31 remaining. The Saints dominated the paint to the tune of 52 points, and turned 20 Bryant miscues into a commanding 27-0 advantage in points off turnovers to fuel their third straight Opening Night win at MVP Arena.
 
Brendan Coyle contributed 13 points and dished out a career-high tying four of 19 Siena assists as opposed to only seven turnovers. Freshman reserve Francis Folefac added 11 points in 13 promising minutes off the bench in his collegiate debut for the Saints which improved to a stellar 64-21 (.753) all-time in home-openers, including 37-13 (.740) at the DI level.
 
Siena concludes opening week action when they travel to Ivy League foe Brown for a Friday night tilt at 7 p.m. in Providence, Rhode Island.