ALBANY, N.Y. – The Niagara men’s basketball team was denied a season sweep of Siena in the final seconds in a 61-59 loss on Sunday at the Times Union Center.

With less than 10 seconds left in the game,  Anthony Nelson dashed to the rim, but his layup came up short. Siena (9-12, 6-5 MAAC) grabbed the rebound and ran out the clock to conclude an intense game between the rivals. Niagara (4-19, 1-10 MAAC) had a 10-point lead early in the second half, but the Saints rallied in the final minutes to deny the Purple Eagles’ their first win in Albany since 2005.

Niagara dictated the game’s tempo in the first half with its stingy defense. The Purple Eagles held Siena to 30 percent shooting and forced 10 turnovers in the half. Kashief Edwards scored two of his 14 first half points with a jumper with 8:35 remaining to give Niagara an 18-9 lead. The Saints responded with an 11-0 run, but the Purple Eagles withstood the momentum shift and scored the final five points in the half to take a 30-24 halftime lead.

Niagara built a 43-33 lead to start the second half behind three straight 3-pointers by Marvin Jordan. Siena made two big runs to get back into the game, but each run was halted by a 3-pointer by Nelson. An Edwards baseline jumper put the Purple Eagles up 56-52 with three minutes remaining.

The Saints, however, went on an 8-0 run to take a 60-56 lead with 23 seconds remaining. A 3-pointer by Jordan cut the lead to 60-59 and Siena’s Ryan Rossiter made one of two free throws to setup the final the possession for Niagara.

Edwards and Jordan both scored a game-high 18 points, while Edwards had a team-high five rebounds. Nelson was the other Purple Eagle in double-digit scoring with 12 points and dished 10 assists for his fifth career double-double and second this season. Scotter Gillette set a career-high with three blocks.

Niagara returns home next weekend to face the Saint Peter’s Peacocks on Friday, Feb. 4 at 7 p.m.