Siena basketball getting ready for back-to-back grind

The Saints are due to open the season against the Hawks on back-to-back days at the Alumni Recreation Center, tipping off at 3 on Sunday at 5 on Monday.

“These guys haven’t done that since they played AAU,” Siena head coach Carmen Maciariello said on a Zoom call this week.

The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference adopted a back-to-back schedule in the same venue this season to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Actually, it’s not that uncommon for college basketball teams to play consecutive days. It happens every year during conference tournaments. It occurs during the regular season, too, in exempt tournaments. The last time Siena played on back-to-back days in the regular season were victories over Radford and Bryant in the 2K Classic on Nov 20 and 21, 2015.