ALBANY, NY - The No. 2 seed Iona College men's basketball team advanced to its fourth straight MAAC Championship game and fifth in six seasons under head coach Tim Cluess by virtue of its 81-70 win over No. 3 and host Siena in semifinal round action at the Times Union Center. Seniors A.J. English and Isaiah Williams combined for 52 points to lead the Gaels Sunday night.

English scored 23 of his game-high 29 points in the second half. He shot 9-for-19 from the field, 5-of-10 from beyond the arc and 6-for-6 from the free throw line while adding five assists, five steals and three rebounds in 38 minutes. Williams posted a 23-point, 11-rebound double-double on 10-of-16 shooting with three three-pointers. With his second field goal of the contest less than four minutes in, Williams became the 37th player in Iona history and seventh under Cluess to record 1,000 career points.

Sophomore Deyshonee Much added nine points; rookie Jahaad Proctor added seven and graduate Aaron Rountree posted six points, six rebounds, five assists, four blocks and steal to lead the Gaels.

Siena was led by 18 points from rookie Nico Clareth. Junior Brett Bisping posted 16 points and nine rebounds while juniors Lavon Long and Javion Ogunyemi had 14 and 13 points respectively.

Iona trailed for a total of 53 seconds in the game. After Siena took a 28-26 lead with 7:40 left, Iona scored 10 straight over the next three minutes to open an eight point advantage. Iona ended the half on a 19-3 run and led 45-31 at the break.

The Saints got as close as five points after a Clareth three pointer made it 53-48 at the 13:51 mark and trailed by six with 6:44 to play before a 11-4 run capped by an English three ball sealed the win.

Iona faces No. 1 Monmouth in the MAAC Championship game Monday at 7:00 pm on ESPN. The Gaels and Hawks split the regular season series, each taking a game on the other's home floor.