Siena played fearlessly against Duke. It was enough to flirt with an all-time March Madness upset

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Siena’s Brendan Coyle buried a 3-pointer, then raised his arms emphatically to the crowd.

Teammate Gavin Doty followed minutes later with his own 3, running downcourt with his hand raised to his ear as though making a call.

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Siena rolled into its first March Madness game since 2010 with fearless confidence that kept growing with every made shot and each point tacked onto an expanding lead. Only this was in the most improbable of settings: as a 16-seed in the NCAA Tournament, rolling out just five players — and sticking it to No. 1 overall seed Duke.

Ultimately, the Saints couldn’t complete an all-timer of a tournament shocker, fading late as the Blue Devils rallied from their biggest deficit all season — 13 points — before finally putting away a 71-65 win in the first round of the East Region. But they made the afternoon theirs in South Carolina, thrilling a curious-turned-buzzing crowd while forcing the Blue Devils to confront the possibility that the unthinkable could really happen.

“We believe!” a Siena fan yelled from the stands during one first-half surge.

And the Saints gave them every reason to.

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“I’ve been doing this a long time. I don’t think I’ve ever been more proud of any group of kids I’ve been around,” Siena coach Gerry McNamara said. “I think the world and college basketball saw what I’ve been so grateful and thankful to be around all season: a group of kids that love each other, that compete at the highest level and play for each other.”

Sending a message

The NCAA Tournament is known for upsets, the kind of little-guy-takes-down-the-giant moments that capture the nation’s imagination every spring. And yet, what nearly transpired is the kind of moment that rarely happens.

The No. 1 seeds entered the week with a 158-2 record against 16 seeds in the tournament, the outliers being Virginia’s loss to UMBC in 2018 and Purdue’s loss to Fairleigh Dickinson in 2023.

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And Duke — a…

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Publish date : 2026-03-20 14:44:00

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