Siena Saints

The Albany Cup is returning and it should be. Siena College and the University at Albany officially announced the return of the premier Capital Region men's basketball series at a joint press conference Tuesday at 677 Prime in downtown Albany. Both athletic directors have confirmed for months on The Drive with Charlie & Dan that they were working towards an agreement. The three-year deal tips off at the newly renamed MVP Arena next season.

The Great Danes and the Saints haven't met in men's basketball since 2017, when UAlbany won a thriller 74-69 at the former Times Union Center. The year prior, a sellout crowd shook the SEFCU Arena as the two teams matched up on the UAlbany campus for the first time since the 1970's. Now, after a four year hiatus, the match up is back.

Each day, we watch the NBA and NHL shuffle another season of games. Canadian franchises are now playing in front of empty arenas. How will these stoppages effect the high schools and colleges in upstate New York? Will the expected surge of positive COVID 19 test results shut down games to fans or even worse cancel games?

On January 1, 2022, the Times Union Center changed its name for the first time since 2007, becoming the MVP Arena. With a new name, brings new signs everywhere.

It has been a bad decade in New York sports. The New York Giants Super Bowl victory in 2011 is the last major championship in the Big Apple. I say that all changes in 2022! Let's look into our 104.5 The Team crystal ball and see what happens in the New Year!

For Andrew Platek, the Capital Region was home, and was the backdrop for the moments that put him on the map. Now, he's back, and looking for more with hometown Siena.

I laugh when people say that 'the Capital Region is a bad sports town.' Really? When people say that I sometimes feel that they are trying to find something wrong with everything. If you feel like I do, it's time to look at the facts. This is actually a pretty good sports 'town.'

Anytime you notch that first win of the year, it's a big sigh of relief for that head coach or manager. It just is. It's something that you want to get out of the way. Monday night, Siena men's basketball coach Carm Maciariello's team got their first win. It was an important step in Coach Carm's process.

Veteran's Day often reminds me of my dad's early pilgrimage in life. Military service is often a foundation and launch pad for one's future in many ways. The experiences and the lessons from these experiences are often played out and passed down for generations to come.

One coach will take the sidelines for the very first time in the lead chair. The other looks to secure an allusive MAAC Championship that has been snagged from his team's grips the past two seasons. Fans will eagerly return to their seats that have collected dust since March of 2020. Tuesday night, empty basketball venues will be a thing of the past for the Capital Region's two Division I basketball programs.

Playing Division I opponents in exhibition games is nothing new for the College of St. Rose basketball program. The Division II program, nestled in Pine Hills section of the City of Albany, has made the I-90 trip to the Carrier Dome to take on Jim Boeheim's Syracuse Orange for a preseason matchup. Trust me, Boeheim doesn't waste time. If an exhibition opponent isn't going to challenge his players like he needs, they aren't playing his team in the preseason. That is why I could never understand why Siena nor UAlbany would play St. Rose in an exhibition.

Winning the regular season title in his first two years at the helm of the Siena Saints men's basketball program has apparently gone under the radar for his fellow MAAC coaches and that always seems to be OK with the kid from Clifton Park. Saints' head coach Carm Maciariello has done nothing but win, even under some ridiculously restrictive conditions. So, when the MAAC coaches poll came out Tuesday evening and Siena was picked 8th, I laughed. Nope, certainly not at the Saints but at the coaches that voted.