Siena Draws Nine Seed in the Midwest; Saints Face #8 Ohio State on Friday
Siena Sports Information
LOUDONVILLE, N.Y. - The Siena College Saints were awarded the #9 seed in the Midwest Region and will face Big Ten power and #8 seed Ohio State in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament Friday in Dayton, Ohio. The #9 seed is the highest ever for the Saints which are making their fifth appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Siena enters the tournament 26-7 overall after earning the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference's automatic berth by defeating Niagara 77-70 in the MAAC Championship game Monday night in Albany. The 26 wins are the second most in program history and the most since Siena went Division I in 1976-77.
Ohio State sports a 22-10 overall record and finished fourth in the Big Ten with a 10-8 conference record, earning one of 34 at-large bids into the field. The Buckeyes had won four straight games before falling to #24 Purdue in the Big Ten Title Game earlier today.
Siena makes its fifth appearance in the NCAA Tournament and appears in the Midwest Region for a second straight year. Last season as a #13 seed, the Saints defeated #4 Vanderbilt 83-62 in a First Round matchup before falling to #12 seed Villanova in Tampa, Fla.
The Saints and Buckeyes meet for just the second time in program history. The teams first met early in the 1986-87 season, a 101-57 victory for Ohio State in Columbus.
Siena and Ohio State had one common opponent this year in Iona. The Buckeyes defeated the Gaels 71-53 on Dec. 20 in Columbus, while Siena swept their regular season MAAC series with Iona.
The winner of the game advances to the Second Round Sunday against either the #1 overall seed Louisville or the winner of the Opening Round game between Alabama State and Morehead State.
Tip time for Friday's game will be announced shortly. Make sure to log on to SienaSaints.com for the latest information on game time and other information surrounding the Saints.