Basketball
March Madness 2026: Duke survives monumental upset, storms back to beat Siena
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Entering this week's NCAA Tournament, No. 1 seeds were a career 158-2 against No. 16 seeds. That wasn't expected to change on Thursday afternoon when No. 1 overall seed Duke took on No. 16-seeded Siena from Greenville, South Carolina. Down 44-33 at half and 61-56 with 7:53 to go in the game, it appeared Duke could be the third team and the biggest one of them all.
But the Blue Devils defense clamped down, and the offense woke up to go on an 11-0 run and never looked back to rally for a 71-65 victory. They will take on No. 9 TCU, who beat Ohio State 66-64 earlier in the day, on Saturday in the second round.
The likely National Player of the Year, Cameron Boozer, led the way for Duke as he had 22 points and 13 rebounds. Boozer hit four free throws in the final 20 seconds to seal the game for the Blue Devils. His brother, Cayden, scored 19 points for a team that shot 40.7 percent for the game and only made 5 of 26 from three-point range.
"Just in general, [Gerry McNamara] outcoached me," Duke coach Jon Scheyer told CBS after the game. "They were more ready to play. The readiness and toughness of our guys, just to weather that storm in the second half, I'm proud of them."
Siena came out hot in the first half as they shot 60 percent in the first half, including 50 percent from the three-point line. But things took a drastic turn in the second half for the MAAC Champions as they shot just 23.5 percent in the final 20 minutes. Siena missed a number of dunks and shots around the basket, which wasn't going to be good enough to pull off the stunner.
"You're looking at a guy that played 40 minutes a lot," Sienna Head Coach Gerry McNamara said after the game. "We just got here from [the MAAC tournament in] Atlantic City doing pretty much the same thing. ... And I asked them, not that they would tell me the truth when I say, 'Are you good?' They tell me 'Yeah.' I would tell my coach the same thing, I'm fine regardless. They gave us everything."
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March Madness 2026 dates, full schedule
- First Four: Tuesday and Wednesday, March 17-18, from UD Arena in Dayton
- First round (round of 64): Thursday, March 19, from KeyBank Center in Buffalo, Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, and Moda Center in Portland
- First round (round of 64): Friday, March 20, from Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Viejas Arena in San Diego, and Enterprise Center in St. Louis
- Second round (round of 32): Saturday, March 21, from KeyBank Center in Buffalo, Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, and Moda Center in Portland
- Second round (round of 32): Sunday, March 22, from Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Viejas Arena in San Diego, and Enterprise Center in St. Louis
- Sweet 16 (regional semifinals): Thursday, March 26, from Toyota Center in Houston (South Region), SAP Center in San Jose (West Region)
- Sweet 16 (regional semifinals): Friday, March 27, from United Center in Chicago (Midwest Region), Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. (East Region)
- Elite Eight (regional finals): Saturday, March 28, from Toyota Center in Houston (South Region), SAP Center in San Jose (West Region)
- Elite Eight (regional finals): Sunday, March 29, from United Center in Chicago (Midwest Region), Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. (East Region)
- Final Four (national semifinals and national championship): Saturday, April 4 and Monday, April 6 from Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis
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