ALBANY — The Siena men’s basketball program has lost 11 of its past 12 games dating to last season.

Sunday night was the low point. The Saints were embarrassed on their home floor in an 86-51 loss to crosstown rival University at Albany for the Albany Cup.

Siena coach Carmen Maciariello said he’d never been part of a defeat like that one, the most lopsided in the rivalry’s Division I era.

“I didn’t see an urgent team,” Maciariello said. “I didn’t see a team that was trying to win something. I didn’t see a team that wanted to compete for a MAAC title. I didn’t see a bunch of hungry guys that they would do anything it took to win the basketball game. I think we’ve got a bunch of nice guys. That doesn’t win championships.”

Siena (1-5) opens Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play on Friday against league favorite Rider (1-4) at MVP Arena.

The loss showed regression for a young team that appeared to be coming around in competitive losses to Central Michigan and Milwaukee in the Sunshine Slam in Daytona Beach, Fla., a week earlier. The Saints even got back injured guards Michael Eley and Zek Te-kin for the UAlbany game.

“We show glimpses against Central Michigan and glimpses against Milwaukee, and we think it’s just a magic potion that’s going to be able to all of a sudden show up when you want?” Maciariello said. “It’s not how this thing works. It’s not how life works. You have to earn it every single day. So like I said, I apologize to our fans. But like I said, credit to Albany.”

The 35-point defeat didn’t sit well with red-shirt sophomore forward Giovanni Emejuru, the Sam Houston State transfer who had six points and four rebounds in 23 minutes in his first Albany Cup experience.

“Just not good enough,” he said. “It’s not acceptable in any way, shape or form that we just didn’t come out to perform today.”

After the two-point loss to Milwaukee, Maciariello responded to fan criticism of his recruiting philosophy, calling it “garbage” in a postgame radio interview.

He elaborated on Friday, two days before the Albany Cup loss.

“I try to make sure our fans understand how we do our job and how we build rosters,” Maciariello said. “Obviously, injuries happen no matter what. Also, you want to have a locker room that’s unified. If you have too many guys that play the same position, now you’re not creating a chemistry and love for one another in the locker room when you’ve got guys thinking they’re better than this guy or better than that guy. For us, I don’t really get concerned with that, but I wanted to help give a lens from a coach.”

There’s no more help coming, unless redshirt junior transfer guard Sean Durugordon wins his appeal for an NCAA waiver to play right away. The Saints will have to improve from within with four freshmen and five sophomores in their rotation. Maciariello talked about simplifying things for his team.

“I know they want to win,” he said. “Now it’s how are we getting there. How are we making sure we’re ready to play.”

ALBANY — The University at Albany men’s basketball team wasn’t about to blow another big second-half lead in the Albany Cup.

On Sunday night, the Great Danes put Siena farther and farther into their rear-view mirror en route to the biggest margin of victory in the Division I history of their rivalry.

UAlbany redshirt sophomore guard Amar’e Marshall scored a career-high 33 points to lead the Great Danes to an 86-51 romp over Siena on Sunday night before a crowd of 7,605 at MVP Arena.

“Honestly, I think it was really just overall emotional maturity,” said UAlbany sophomore guard Marcus Jackson, an Albany Academy graduate. “I think last year we got too high. I think this year we did a good job of just staying poised and staying into the game.”

Unlike last year, when the Great Danes squandered a 16-point, second-half lead to lose 75-62, UAlbany kept rolling on Sunday on its way to a 35-point victory, surpassing Siena’s 83-54 rout in 2009.

“It obviously feels really good,” said UAlbany sophomore forward Jonathan Beagle, a Hudson Falls native. “I remember how I felt last year. Going into halftime, we just came out, we knew we had to keep the pedal on the gas and keep going. We knew they’re a very talented team and they could turn it on at any time.”

Junior guard Sebastian Thomas added 14 points and Beagle had 13 points for the Great Danes (3-3).

Siena sophomore guard Michael Eley, back after missing four games with an ankle injury, led the Saints with 20 points. Siena (1-5) lost its fifth consecutive game.

“It’s not a good feeling at all,” Eley said. “I hate losing, but like Coach said, we’ve just got to get better on Wednesday when we get ready for practice and get ready for conference. This game’s over with, learn from it, but the biggest thing, I think we just need to play hard. Guys have really got to grow up and they’ve got to give it out on the floor.”

Siena head coach Carmen Maciariello credited UAlbany and said, “They kicked our butts.” Perplexed by his team’s lack of energy, Maciariello also apologized to the Saints fans, alumni and season-ticket holders.

“This is embarrassing,” Maciariello said. “We should be embarrassed.”

UAlbany used a 20-0 run that bridged the first and second halves to take a 43-23 lead with 16:49 to play. The Saints went scoreless for 8:03.

After leading 28-23 at halftime, the Great Danes outscored Siena 58-28 in the second half.

“We had a little lead, but we knew we could play a lot better than we did in the first half,” Thomas said. “It was a team thing.”

Jackson said he reminded his teammates of last year’s loss during a timeout early in the second half. He told them to stay poised and locked in on the scouting report.

UAlbany shot 70.6 percent (24-of-34) from the field in the second half. The Great Danes outrebounded Siena 45-33 and had edges of 26-1 in fast-break points and 23-6 in points off turnovers.

These teams are much different this year. UAlbany was infused with transfer talent, including Marshall from Hofstra and Thomas from Rhode Island, and Siena has a much younger roster.

Sunday’s game was supposed to be played at UAlbany’s Broadview Center before caution over arena renovations caused the venue to be switched to MVP Arena.

Homecourt advantage didn’t matter to the Great Danes, who cut Siena’s lead in the series to 11-8 since the rivalry was renewed in 2001.

“I just want to compete and play,” UAlbany head coach Dwayne Killings said. “If they said we’re going to play the game on outdoor courts on campus, so be it. Whatever. All that stuff is just distractions. … We’ll have an opportunity to host it next year. I know it’ll be electric. Obviously, they’ll have more motivation for it.”

UAlbany next plays Boston University on Wednesday in the Broad-view Center reopening. Siena opens MAAC play at home against Rider on Friday.

Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer, the winningest coach in the history of women’s college basketball, plans to visit the University at Albany locker room after Sunday’s game in Maples Pavilion.

The fourth-ranked Cardinal (6-0) and UAlbany (4-1) tip off at 4 p.m.

VanDerveer, a Schenectady native who played her freshman season at UAlbany in 1971-72, accepted an invitation from UAlbany assistant coach Yvonne Hawkins to speak to the players afterward.

“I think women’s basketball, we’re really in the process of growing our game,” VanDerveer said in a phone interview Friday. “Just wanted them to know maybe my connection to their school. When I was there, I watched them build the towers (on campus). I watched them build that school and it’s a great, great university. Letting them know that they’re playing up and I’m going to be rooting for them after that.”

UAlbany coach Colleen Mullen said her team will tour the Stanford campus after speaking to VanDerveer, who has won 1,192 games and three NCAA championships. She’s 11 victories from passing Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski as the all-time winningest coach in men’s or women’s college basketball.

Mullen and VanDerveer will meet for the first time.

“I mean, she’s a trailblazer in women’s basketball,” Mullen said. “She’s an icon. She’s a Hall of Fame coach. She’s just a very strong female leader that I want players to get the opportunity to get to know. … To have that experience of meeting her, hearing her perspective, hearing her path for success and any nuggets or words of wisdom that she can share with our players to make the experience that much more memorable.”

Raised in Chelmsford, Mass., Mullen said she fell in love with basketball watching VanDerveer’s Stanford teams on television when there wasn’t as much visibility for women’s basketball.

That personal history was incentive for Mullen to schedule this game. She also wanted to get her players a trip to the Bay Area to face one of the most prolific programs in the women’s game. Mullen has never faced Stanford as a player or a coach.

VanDerveer said her director of basketball operations, Eileen Roche, set up the game.

“We needed a home game and I think that Albany, they’ve traditionally had a really good team,” VanDerveer said. “When she said, ‘Hey, would you like to play them,’ I said, ‘Sure.’ We’re excited they’re coming out.”

VanDerveer went to The Milne School in Albany, which didn’t have a girls’ team, from seventh grade on before attending UAlbany for one season. Looking for better competition, she transferred to Indiana for her final three years.

At UAlbany, VanDerveer lived in Dutch Quad. Her roommate Pat Gold had a daughter, Ros Gold-Onwude, who ended up playing for VanDerveer at Stanford. Gold-Onwude is now a broadcaster for ESPN.

“I have just incredibly strong, positive memories and connections to Albany,” VanDerveer said.

She sent them a video message before UAlbany lost at Louisville two years ago in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

“I think just play hard and be yourself,” VanDerveer recalled as her message. “You’re in the NCAA Tournament and have fun.”

UAlbany hopes to win another America East title this season. Mullen thinks this game will help toward that goal, regardless of the outcome.

“I think they’re a national championship-caliber team,” Mullen said. “We’re obviously going to have to play a very flawless game to upset them. My focus is that the players have fun and enjoy the experience and they feel good about executing a game plan.”

VanDerveer said she hopes the game will be beneficial for both teams.

“We know that Albany is a great program,” she said. “We’ve been playing great competition, and Albany will be no exception.”

UALBANY VS. STANFORD

When: 4 p.m. Sunday

Where: Maples Pavilion, Stanford, Calif.

TV: Pac-12 Network

ALBANY — There are players who will try to treat Sunday like it’s just another game when it clearly isn’t. There are newcomers who have no idea what the Albany Cup game is about.

Siena and the University at Albany will battle for local bragging rights at MVP Arena, where this edition of the Albany Cup wasn’t even supposed to be played, for a rare Thanksgiving weekend matchup of the area’s two Division I programs.

Tip-off is 5 p.m.

“It’s very meaningful,” said Siena sophomore guard Mason Courtney, a Shenendehowa graduate. “As a kid, I remember coming to these games with my dad and my family, so that means a lot. But Coach Carm (Maciariello) has stressed this week that we can’t over-stress about it. It’s just another game. We follow our rules. We played really well against Milwaukee. We’re building steps. We’re going in the right direction, so don’t overhype yourself up. It’s another game, so go out there and do what we do.”

The Saints (1-4) are trying to snap a four-game losing streak, including back-to-back losses to Central Michigan and Milwaukee in the Sunshine Slam in Dayton Beach, Fla. The Milwaukee loss came on a basket with 0.2 seconds left.

Meanwhile, UAlbany (2-3) is trying to build off Tuesday’s 62-59 win over Army at Cool Insuring Arena in Glens Falls. This is the Great Danes’ last game before they return to campus in a renovated Broadview Center.

This year’s Albany Cup game was scheduled for Broadview Center before it was moved in May out of caution over whether the renovations would be completed in time. They’ll meet next season at UAlbany in the final game of a three-year contract.

Sunday will be UAlbany’s first game played in Albany since last year’s Albany Cup game, won by Siena 75-62. The Great Danes played their home games off campus at Hudson Valley Community College last season.

“It’s a huge opportunity for us, obviously,” UAlbany coach Dwayne Killings said. “It’s been a while since we played a game here in Albany. … Now we have a chance to play in front of our home fans in the city. It’s a game for bragging rights. The game means a lot to all of the people that are part of our program, part of our campus community, part of the community of people that root for us. Our kids are excited for it.”

There should be a smaller crowd than last year, which drew 9,561 for the first Albany Cup since 2017. This is only the second time they’ve played on a Sunday on Thanksgiving weekend since the rivalry was renewed in 2001. There were 6,597 tickets sold as of noon Friday.

“I’m really hoping we get a lot of people,” Courtney said. “We’ve been trying to do a good job of reminding our classmates, reminding people that we do have a game this Sunday. … I think we’re going to get a pretty good turnout, similar to last year.”

UAlbany had a 16-point lead over Siena in the second half last year before the Saints dominated the final 16 minutes. That memory stuck with UAlbany sophomore Marcus Jackson, an Albany Academy graduate.

“I just remember us being up and letting our age and immaturity hurt us in a way,” Jackson said. “Siena had a very mature group, older guys, and it showed in that game. That’s something this year I’m going to try to go in and focus on.”

Siena guard Michael Evbagharu, who had 18 points and14 rebounds against Milwaukee, is a freshman from Toronto on a much younger team and getting his baptism to the Albany Cup rivalry.

“I just heard it’s kind of like a big rivalry game, a game that gets the fans packed out in MVP,” Evbagharu said. “Just kind of looking forward to it.”

Maciariello said he will probably decide at the game-day shoot-around whether starting guards Michael Eley (ankle) and Zek Tekin (concussion protocol) will play. They both practiced Friday.

UAlbany redshirt sophomore Justin Neely, who tore his ACL in last year’s Albany Cup game, hasn’t played yet this season.

“He had a really good day of practice (Thursday),” Killings said. “When he gets back on the floor is up to Justin and his family. We’re kind of taking it day-by-day. There’s no rush for him right now.”

Siena leads the Division I rivalry with UAlbany 11-7.

UALBANY VS. SIENA

When: 5 p.m. Sunday

Where: MVP Arena

Radio: JAMZ 96.3 FM, WTMM 104.5 FM

Since the start of last season, the University at Albany basketball program has played one game in Albany County. That was the Albany Cup game against Siena at MVP Arena.

Coach Dwayne Killings and the Great Danes return there Sunday, 54 weeks later and three days before they finally get to play a game on their own campus. He said he learned a lot from his first Albany Cup experience, a 75-62 Siena victory in front of 9,591, and hopes that some of the passion can travel five miles down Western and Washington Avenues to UAlbany’s home base.

The Danes, who managed their entire home schedule last season at Hudson Valley Community Center in Troy, open their renovated Broad-view Center (formerly SEFCU Arena) on Wednesday night in a nonconference game against Boston University.

“People really care about basketball in this community,” Killings said Friday. “People really care about our program. Next week we open up the building here. Our expectations are we fill the building. My mind went to another space once the game got over, and I was thinking, ‘How can we replicate this environment more often?’

“People really do care. Basketball means a lot. Our program means a lot. The kids and what they’re playing for and what they represent, there’s a huge value, a huge premium on that. It gave me goose bumps walking out there to coach the game, just seeing people nodding their heads. Every game’s a big game, but that game obviously meant a little bit more.”

This year’s meeting with Siena initially was scheduled for UAlbany, but the schools swapped seasons to allow additional time for Broadview Center to finish construction. Siena will play in UAlbany’s 3,800-seat campus facility next year.

The Danes (2-3) have four Capital Region players on their roster — 6-foot-7 graduate transfer Marcus Filien from Albany Academy, 6-2 sophomore Marcus Jackson of Amsterdam, 6-10 sophomore Jonathan Beagle from Hudson Falls, and 6-2 freshman Zach Matulu of Shaker — who knew about the Albany Cup long before becoming collegians.

“It’s a really big game in the area,” said Fi-lien, who transferred in from Cornell. “The energy in the building would be amazing. It’s fun to be able to play in one now instead of being 5, 6, 7, 8 years old in the stands running around crazy. It’ll be a really cool experience come Sunday.”

“We’ve got a couple of more local guys, so it definitely hits home for a lot more people,” Jackson said. “It’s just good to really get back out with my guys and prove what we’ve got.”

Nostalgia aside, Jackson and Beagle, in particular, have memories of last year’s game that they would prefer to erase or at least avenge.

“I remember the feeling after the game of losing it, and just how hard it is to win in college basketball,” said Beagle, who had nine points and eight rebounds in the game. “We were up 17 points and they came back, and I think we got way too high in our emotions.

“We were a young group, I was a freshman, so I wasn’t poised at all. We thought we were going to win, just like in high school if you were up. College basketball’s a different beast. We’ve just got to be more poised and never take any opportunity for granted.”

UAlbany’s men’s basketball team led most of the way at Quinnipiac on Sunday afternoon — but the Great Danes would fall at the end, 85-82.

Led by Sebastian Thomas and Amar’e Marshall with 19 points apiece, four Great Danes scored in double digits, while Marcus Jackson led with nine rebounds. The Bobcats’ big advantage came in the fast break, outscoring UAlbany 20-8 in transition opportunities. 

“I thought Quinnipiac rebounded the ball the way they needed to late in the game,” said UAlbany head coach Dwayne Killings. “We didn’t execute a couple of times towards the end ... we have to be able to be more sound defensively,” he added.

In women’s basketball, UVM cruised to a double-digit victory over visiting Saint Rose, 60-44. Both teams had a slow start to Sunday’s matchup, but the Catamounts would outscore the Golden Knights 11-7 by the end of the first quarter — setting up a lead they would maintain throughout the game Saint Rose battled to the end, however, outscoring the Catamounts 10-8 over the final six-plus minutes.