What : Florida Atlantic (6-4, 0-0) vs Siena (2-6, 1-1) When : Monday, Dec. 13th @ 8:00 PM EST Where : Times Union Center TV : Time Warner Cable Sports (New York) Live Video : Siena Pay Per View Internet Broadcast : Here Live Stats : Here Siena Team Site : Here Probable Starters : FAU G Alex Tucker 10.3 ppg G Dennis Mavin 8.3 ppg G Greg Gantt 14.8 ppg F Kore White 10.3 ppg F Brett Royster 7.3 ppg Siena G Rakeem Brookins 8.0 ppg G Clarence Jackson 16.5 ppg F Trenity Burdine 2.9 ppg F O.D. Anosike 6.8 ppg C Ryan Rossiter 19.5 ppg The series Monday night’s tilt preludes the first time the programs have met on the hardwood. FAU at a Glance The Owls tip-off game two of a five game road stint against Siena on Monday night; fresh off a 63-59 win against Hofstra . The Owls gave up an uncharacteristic 15 turnovers, and 17 points off of them to the Saints, and will need to improve on that against Siena, who is a arguably a better all around team defensively. “We’ll probably have to play a little bit harder on Monday”, said Mike Jarvis. “Their at home, that’s the biggest problem. We just have to be strong enough to deal with whatever it is (they challenge us with).” While Siena may be new to Florida Atlantic, it’s not to their head man. Coach Jarvis returns to old stomping grounds on Monday night for his ninth all- time match up against the Saints. Jarvis was 3-5 against Siena while at Boston University, including a one point loss in the 1989 North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Championship; which both teams were once members of. The NAC is now known as the America East Conference . Florida Atlantic had a moment of concern on Saturday when forward Kore White left the game with an apparent leg injury. However, he will suite up and is “a full go” for Monday. Siena at a Glance The Saints are having a rough go of things so far this year. During the worst home loss since 2005, a 72-55 fall to Fairfield last Friday night , some fans thought it best to let out their displeasure with “boos” as Siena moved to a winless mark (0-4) at home for the first time since entering NCAA DI status. “I think, it is what it is. It has holes. We have to work things out”, said head coach Mitch Buonaguro when asked about whether he thought his team was in trouble. “Were depleted, but thats not an excuse for a 17-point loss.” While they can generate turnovers in steals (7.1 pg), they cough them up as well. The Saints have averaged more giveaways (16.1) that assists (12.8 ) through the first eight contests. Siena goes as the one-two punch of guard Clarence Jackson and center Ryan Rossiter goes. The two account for 50.2% of total points per game. Rossiter (13.4 rpg) has put up a double-double performance six times this year, and 23 of the last 27 games going back to the 2009-10 season. He recently became the program’s all-time career leader with 38. The magic number for the Saints appears to be 70, as they have won 48 straight games when holding its opponents below the mark. Unfortunately, they are allowing 79 points per game in their six losses this year. They have made six appearances in the Big Dance (1989, 1999, 2002, 2008, 2009, 2010). Latest Line : SC -4 Owl’s Nest Prediction Not sure what the betters are seeing in Siena. A quick analysis on paper yields a favorable tilt the Owls’ way at 1.2 points, even with home court advantage factored in – which there hasn’t been any of this year for the Saints. And, there’s no reason to think it will change given a few key factors – turnovers, and free throws made. Of concern is the potential foul trouble of Royster and White against Rossiter, but FAU was more than effective in its strategy against USF’s size and it is safe to assume a double team might be in effect again at times to make that happen. The “road warriors” get the nod once again in what should be a close one down the stretch. FAU -2
