GREENVILLE, S.C. — Cameron Boozer had 22 points and 13 rebounds to help No. 1 overall seed Duke rally for a 71-65 victory over No. 16 Siena in a first-round East Region matchup on Thursday in Greenville, S.C.
Boozer went 13-for-14 from the free-throw line for Duke (33-2), which trailed by as many as 13 points before escaping. Twin brother Cayden Boozer added a season-high 19 points and Isaiah Evans had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Blue Devils, who advance to face No. 9 TCU on Saturday.
“That game was ours to take,” Cameron Boozer said after the win. “The first half, we put ourselves in that position. We knew we were going to be able to come out of it. We just had to come together, do what we do. We ended up figuring it out and came out with the win.”
Siena (23-12) was the first NCAA Tournament team since DePaul in 1979 to play its starters the entire game. The Saints nearly became the third No. 16 seed to upset a No. 1 in tourney history, following UMBC (2018) and Fairleigh Dickinson (2023).
“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,” Saints 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.”
This wasn’t a typical one-seed versus 16 matchup, with Duke struggling for much of the game and requiring a strong second-half rally to move forward.
“Toughest one, not close. Toughest moment, toughest game, toughest position I’ve ever been in in the tournament, no question about it,” Duke head coach Jon Scheyer said, comparing the game to his previous experiences in similar pairings. “You have to credit Siena for it.”
Gavin Doty scored 21 points to lead the Saints, followed by Francis Folefac with 18 and Brendan Coyle with 12.
Ahead 47-34, Siena had a chance to extend its lead further, but Riley Mulvey and Folefac missed dunks on the same possession, which led to Evans’ fast-break slam with 17:10 remaining. The dunk sparked an 11-0 run, capped by Dame Sarr’s flush to cut the deficit to two.
Coyle hit a pair of triples to give Siena a six-point cushion before Cayden Boozer’s layup and Evans’ trey narrowed the gap to a point.
Evans’ driving layup at the 4:25 mark gave Duke a 63-61 lead — the Blue Devils’ first since the first five minutes of the game. Cayden Boozer hit a contested layup to extend the lead to six with 1:36 remaining.
Mulvey’s putback at the 1:06 mark ended a 6:47 scoring drought for the Saints, reducing the lead to four. However, Evans and Cameron Boozer each made two free throws in the final moments to secure the victory.
Duke held an early 10-6 lead, but Folefac scored four straight points and Justice Shoats made a layup to give Siena a 12-10 advantage and ignite the crowd.
Coyle knocked down consecutive triples to give the Saints a 22-16 lead, forcing a Duke timeout with 11:29 left in the first half. Folefac added a pair of layups after the break, putting the Saints ahead by 10.
Maliq Brown’s dunk ended an eight-plus-minute stretch without a made field goal for the Blue Devils. Doty’s second 3-pointer pushed the lead to 11.
Cayden Boozer pulled the Blue Devils within seven on consecutive baskets, but Doty’s 16th point of the first half gave Siena a 43-32 halftime lead.
–Jack Batten, Field Level Media
