EMMITSBURG, MD – An efficient Justice Shoats and a standout defensive performance paced Siena Basketball to its fourth win in as many tries on Sundays. The Saints closed on a 16-3 run over the final 5:21 to pull away from defending Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament Champion Mount St. Mary's 67-50 at Knott Arena.
 
Shoats scored 18 points on 8-11 shooting while adding five rebounds, four assists, and zero turnovers in 40 full minutes running the point for Siena (11-6, 4-2), which also improved to a perfect 6-0 in day games this season.
 
Ranked 19^th nationally in scoring defense (65.1) entering play, the Saints held Mount St. Mary's (6-12, 2-5) to just 29% shooting including only 6-27 (22%) from three. Moreover, Siena stymied the Mount starting backcourt to a combined 1-21 from the field including 1-14 from distance.  
 
Trey Deveaux was the lone Mount player in double figures with 12 points, while Abdou Khadre Kebe and Luke McEldon added eight apiece.
 
The Saints led virtually throughout and produced an 18-4 run over 6:43 down the stretch to take as much as a 13-point first half lead at 28-15 at the 4:39 mark. But Mount St. Mary's responded with a 10-1 run to close the half and rally within 29-25 at the break.
 
Siena never relinquished the lead in the second half, but also led by no more than eight points over the first 17-plus minutes as the Mount hung tough.
 
But Francis Folefac was tougher. The freshman scored all 15 of his points in the second half – eight of which came during the decisive game-ending run – as the Saints ultimately won going away.
 
Gavin Doty rounded out the Siena double figure scorers with 10 points and seven rebounds, while the bench provided a huge spark. Freshman Christian Jones contributed nine points – including a clutch 30-foot three to beat the shot clock and push the lead back to eight with 3:47 to go – and was a team-best +22. Graduate student Riley Mulvey provided big minutes on the interior, tallying five points and a career-high nine rebounds, while adding a pair of assists and steals apiece.
 
The Saints return to the Capital Region to continue a busy stretch of six games in 14 days when they host Sacred Heart Wednesday night at 7 p.m. at MVP Arena.