The Siena men's basketball team is sitting in the cellar of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference at the midway point of the league schedule.
At least the Saints have plenty of company.
Siena (6-16 overall, 2-7 MAAC) is tied for last place with three other teams: Saint Peter's, Fairfield and Marist. Two of them meet on Monday when the Saints play host to the Peacocks (8-12, 2-7) at Times Union Center.
"Definitely, no one wants to be in last place,'' freshman guard Roman Penn said. "This game will help us jump up ... We've just got to come out ready to play and win the game."
The Saints were picked to finish sixth out of 11 teams in the MAAC preseason coaches' poll. That was before they struggled against a tough nonconference slate with an inexperienced roster and then lost junior guard Nico Clareth, their top scorer, who left the program this month.
Siena has lost four of its past five games, all road defeats.
"I think we had higher hopes for ourselves, but that's the way it's been rolling,'' junior forward Evan Fisher said. "I think that's just cool we still have nine games left. There are some other teams struggling and to jump (in the standings) ... after one or two wins would be big for us."
With that in mind, the Saints went back to basics during Sunday's practice. They focused on running the '2 Play,' a staple of the flex offense that head coach Jimmy Patsos has used since his days as a Maryland assistant. Patsos wasn't happy with his team settling for 24 3-point attempts in a loss at Monmouth on Thursday. The '2 Play' emphasizes ball movement and attacking inside.
The Saints are last in the MAAC with 11.6 assists per game. Their adjusted offensive efficiency of 98.7 points per 100 possessions is third-worst in the MAAC and 274th in the country, according to basketball statistician Ken Pomeroy. Siena doesn't have a player averaging double figures in scoring on its current roster.
"My point is, let's see how good we can get as a group,'' Patsos said. "We're a unit. We're going to run the flex a little more, we're going to play a little more solid. We've taken too many 3s, again. That's on me as a coach. I let that slip away. We made some 3s, but all of a sudden we took 24 3s at Monmouth. I charted it and we should have taken 16."
Fisher pointed out Siena is trying to simplify its offense after struggling with broken plays and shot-clock violations recently.
Siena might not have its two best 3-point shooters against Saint Peter's, anyway. Sophomore guard Khalil Richard (45.1 percent) and freshman guard Jordan Horn (39.3 percent) both missed practice on Sunday.
Richard looks likely to miss his second straight game with a wrist injury and Horn could be a gametime decision after tweaking his ankle against Monmouth.
"Everybody's got to step up if our two (shooting) guards are out,'' Penn said. "If they're out, we've got to play together and play hard. If they're playing, same thing."
Though Saint Peter's is riding a five-game losing streak, the Peacocks are playing their typically rigid defense. They're holding opponents to 42.7 percent shooting, best in the MAAC, and they've got the league's best adjusted defensive efficiency at 103 points per 100 possessions, according to Ken Pomeroy.
"I watched them against Rider the other night on ESPNU,'' Fisher said. "They basically had (Rider) beat until the last three minutes. I don't think they have a lot of scorers, but they play some tough D and they're coached very well."
Saint Peter's is led by graduate guard Nick Griffin, a George Washington transfer, who averages 13.9 points per game. Junior college transfer guard Davauhnte Turner adds 11.9 ppg.
While Saint Peter's starts one freshman, Siena could have as many as four.
"We're younger, but we're getting better,'' Patsos said. "Everything's not lost. The future's bright. Every win matters."
At least the Saints have plenty of company.
Siena (6-16 overall, 2-7 MAAC) is tied for last place with three other teams: Saint Peter's, Fairfield and Marist. Two of them meet on Monday when the Saints play host to the Peacocks (8-12, 2-7) at Times Union Center.
"Definitely, no one wants to be in last place,'' freshman guard Roman Penn said. "This game will help us jump up ... We've just got to come out ready to play and win the game."
The Saints were picked to finish sixth out of 11 teams in the MAAC preseason coaches' poll. That was before they struggled against a tough nonconference slate with an inexperienced roster and then lost junior guard Nico Clareth, their top scorer, who left the program this month.
Siena has lost four of its past five games, all road defeats.
"I think we had higher hopes for ourselves, but that's the way it's been rolling,'' junior forward Evan Fisher said. "I think that's just cool we still have nine games left. There are some other teams struggling and to jump (in the standings) ... after one or two wins would be big for us."
With that in mind, the Saints went back to basics during Sunday's practice. They focused on running the '2 Play,' a staple of the flex offense that head coach Jimmy Patsos has used since his days as a Maryland assistant. Patsos wasn't happy with his team settling for 24 3-point attempts in a loss at Monmouth on Thursday. The '2 Play' emphasizes ball movement and attacking inside.
The Saints are last in the MAAC with 11.6 assists per game. Their adjusted offensive efficiency of 98.7 points per 100 possessions is third-worst in the MAAC and 274th in the country, according to basketball statistician Ken Pomeroy. Siena doesn't have a player averaging double figures in scoring on its current roster.
"My point is, let's see how good we can get as a group,'' Patsos said. "We're a unit. We're going to run the flex a little more, we're going to play a little more solid. We've taken too many 3s, again. That's on me as a coach. I let that slip away. We made some 3s, but all of a sudden we took 24 3s at Monmouth. I charted it and we should have taken 16."
Fisher pointed out Siena is trying to simplify its offense after struggling with broken plays and shot-clock violations recently.
Siena might not have its two best 3-point shooters against Saint Peter's, anyway. Sophomore guard Khalil Richard (45.1 percent) and freshman guard Jordan Horn (39.3 percent) both missed practice on Sunday.
Richard looks likely to miss his second straight game with a wrist injury and Horn could be a gametime decision after tweaking his ankle against Monmouth.
"Everybody's got to step up if our two (shooting) guards are out,'' Penn said. "If they're out, we've got to play together and play hard. If they're playing, same thing."
Though Saint Peter's is riding a five-game losing streak, the Peacocks are playing their typically rigid defense. They're holding opponents to 42.7 percent shooting, best in the MAAC, and they've got the league's best adjusted defensive efficiency at 103 points per 100 possessions, according to Ken Pomeroy.
"I watched them against Rider the other night on ESPNU,'' Fisher said. "They basically had (Rider) beat until the last three minutes. I don't think they have a lot of scorers, but they play some tough D and they're coached very well."
Saint Peter's is led by graduate guard Nick Griffin, a George Washington transfer, who averages 13.9 points per game. Junior college transfer guard Davauhnte Turner adds 11.9 ppg.
While Saint Peter's starts one freshman, Siena could have as many as four.
"We're younger, but we're getting better,'' Patsos said. "Everything's not lost. The future's bright. Every win matters."
