Albany, NY -- (Sports Network) - Tay Fisher scored 21 points off the bench as Siena marched into the NCAA Tournament with an emphatic 74-53 win over Rider in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference championship game.

Fisher, who scored just three points in the first two games of the tournament, drained 6-of-10 three-pointers for the top-seeded Saints (22-10), who secured their first bid to the NCAA Tournament since 2002. Kenny Hasbrouck added 17 points for Siena, while Edwin Ubiles scored 15.

Jason Thompson scored 22 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the second-seeded Broncs (23-10), who topped Canisius and Marist on their way to the final. Mike Ringgold added eight points on 4-of-6 shooting, but not other player for Rider scored more than six.

Fisher scored 15 points and drained 4-of-6 from beyond the arc in the first half as the Saints built up a 41-30 halftime lead despite 14 points and nine boards from Thompson in the opening 20 minutes.

Siena led by as many as 13 in the early portion of the second half, before Matt Griffin drilled a jumper to pull the Broncs within 48-39 with nearly 13 minutes to play.

Rider couldn't get any closer, and Fisher drained a three from the top of the key with 8:51 to play that stretched the Siena lead to 59-45. Hasbrouck nailed a turnaround jumper from the foul line on Siena's next possession, pushing the lead to 16 with 8:17 to go.

Another three by Fisher gave Siena a 64-45 edge, and Alex Franklin capped off an 11-0 run with 1-of-2 at the free throw line, putting the Saints ahead by 20 with just over 6 1/2 minutes on the clock.

The Saints continued to pull away down the stretch, leading by as many as 27 en route to avenging their loss to Niagara in the 2007 MAAC Tournament final.

Game Notes

The teams tied for the regular season title at 13-5, and had split a pair of contests in the regular season...Fisher was celebrating his 22nd birthday...Thompson finished 10-of-17 from the field and made 2-of-3 from beyond the arc...The Saints shot 51.9 percent from the field, while the Broncs finished at 42.6 percent from the floor.