Greenville, South Carolina (March 19, 2026) - Top-seeded Duke rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit to defeat No. 16 Siena 71-65 in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
Siena led 43-32 at halftime after shooting 55% from the field, including 45% from three-point range. Duke outscored the Saints 39-22 in the second half, with Isaiah Evans' layup giving the Blue Devils their first lead since early in the first half at 63-61 with 4:25 remaining. Siena closed to within four points late, but Gavin Doty missed a three-pointer with 28 seconds left.
The outcome spared Duke from becoming the third No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 seed in tournament history. The previous instances were UMBC's 74-54 upset of Virginia in 2018[1] and Fairleigh Dickinson's 63-58 victory over Purdue in 2023[2].
Bon Secours Wellness Arena, a frequent NCAA Tournament host that has staged first- and second-round games in prior years[3], was the site for this matchup.
Duke was led by freshmen Cameron Boozer with 22 points and 13 rebounds on 13-of-14 free throws, Cayden Boozer with 19 points on 9-of-16 shooting, and Isaiah Evans with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Cameron Boozer, a five-star recruit from the class of 2025 and son of former Duke and NBA forward Carlos Boozer, recorded a double-double[4].
Siena's Gavin Doty led all scorers with 21 points, adding four rebounds and two assists despite 3-of-12 from three-point range. Francis Folefac added 18 points, seven rebounds and two assists, while Brendan Coyle scored 12 points on 4-of-9 shooting. The Saints played only their five starters for the full 40 minutes.
Duke, featuring a highly ranked freshman class, advances to face No. 9 seed TCU in the second round on Saturday. TCU defeated No. 8 Ohio State earlier Thursday.
Sources
- NCAA.com
UMBC makes history by beating No. 1 Virginia in NCAA Tournament
March 16, 2018
https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/article/2018-03-16/umbc-makes-history-beating-virginia-first-no-1-seed-fall-ncaa-tournament - NCAA.com
Fairleigh Dickinson makes history by beating Purdue, second 16-over-1 in NCAA tournament first round
March 17, 2023
https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/article/2023-03-17/fairleigh-dickinson-makes-history-beats-purdue-second-16-over-1-ncaa-tournament-first-round - Wikipedia
Bon Secours Wellness Arena
Accessed October 2024
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bon_Secours_Wellness_Arena - ESPN
Five-star forward Cam Boozer commits to Duke
November 18, 2024
https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/42493684/top-recruit-cam-boozer-commits-duke-blue-devils
