Top-seeded Duke defeated No. 16 Siena 71-65 on March 19, 2026, at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina, in the first round of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament.[1] The Blue Devils overcame a 43-32 halftime deficit, outscoring the Saints 39-22 in the second half.[1]
Siena relied solely on its five starters for all 40 minutes of the game.[1] The Saints led 63-61 with 4:25 remaining until Isaiah Evans' layup gave Duke its first lead since early in the first half.[1] Gavin Doty missed a 3-pointer with 28 seconds left as Siena closed to within four points.[1]
The victory spared Duke from joining the rare list of No. 1 seeds to lose to a No. 16 seed in the tournament's first round, a feat accomplished only twice: UMBC over Virginia in 2018 and Fairleigh Dickinson over Purdue in 2023.[2]
For Siena, Gavin Doty led with 21 points, four rebounds and two assists, despite going 3-for-12 from three-point range. Francis Folefac added 18 points, seven rebounds and two assists, while Brendan Coyle scored 12 points on 4-of-9 shooting.[1]
Cam Boozer paced Duke with 22 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, going 13-for-14 from the free-throw line. Cayden Boozer contributed 19 points on 9-of-16 shooting, and Evans recorded 16 points and 10 rebounds.[1]
At halftime, Siena shot 55% from the field and 45% from three-point range, while Duke made 2 of 15 three-point attempts.[1] Duke improved its shot selection in the second half, particularly inside.[1]
Duke, the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season champion and tournament favorite in some futures markets, advances to face No. 9 seed TCU, which beat No. 8 Ohio State earlier on March 19, in the second round on March 21.[1]
Sources
- Fox News Digital
Article title: "The Duke Blue Devils avoided being on the wrong side of March Madness history"
Publication date: March 19, 2026
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/duke-blue-devils-siena-saints-march-madness - NCAA.com
Article title: "March Madness upsets: Every No. 16 seed vs. No. 1 seed result in the first round"
Publication date: March 17, 2023
https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/article/2023-03-17/march-madness-no-16-seed-beat-no-1-seed-ncaa-tournament
