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The Niagara Purple Eagles officially open their 2013-14 season on Saturday, Nov. 9 with a nationally-televised matchup on Fox Sports 2 versus the Seton Hall Pirates at 6 p.m. from the Prudential Center as part of the 2013 Coaches vs. Cancer Classic. 

Season Preview
A new era of Purple Eagle basketball officially started when Chris Casey was named head coach on April 22, 2013. His announcement as coach marks a new chapter in the 107-year history of basketball at Niagara University. Casey replaces Joe Mihalich, who roamed the sidelines for 15 years while taking Niagara to two NCAA Tournaments and three NITs. Casey is no stranger to postseason play, having been a head coach or assistant coach on eight teams who advanced to the NCAA Tournament and other postseason tournaments at the Division I, II and III levels.

Casey inherits a squad returning four players (two starters) from last season's team who won the MAAC Regular-Season Title and earned the program's 14th appearance to the NIT. One of the starters returning is junior guard Antoine Mason.  The Queens, N.Y. native was a part of a dynamic sophomore duo that became the first pair of sophomores to reach the 1,000-point club in program and MAAC history and was the first set of sophomores to be named to the All-MAAC First Team in league history.

Mason was also named to the NABC Division I All-District 1 team and was the only Purple Eagle named to the MAAC All-Tournament Team. Mason's career-high of 18.7 points per game were second in the conference. He scored in double figures in 28 out of 29 games, including 24 straight. Mason set new career-highs in field goal percentage (44.1), free throw percentage (79.4) and 3-point percentage (31.5).

Another key returner is guard Marvin Jordan, who is the only senior on the team. Jordan has played in the most games (96) and has the most minutes (2,969) on the team. Jordan enters the season 24 points shy of reaching the 1,000-point club. The 3-point specialist has 215 triples in his career, which is third most in program history. He is five 3-pointers away from tying the second place mark and 75 away from tying Tyrone Lewis ('10) for the most all-time.

The two other returners are junior forward Joe Thomas and sophomore guard Tahjere McCall. Thomas, the lone front court player returning, saw action in 28 games last season. McCall played in 32 games last season, only missing Niagara's MAAC Tournament Semifinals due to injury. Rayvon Harris will be eligible to play this season after sitting out last season while redshirting. Harris spent the 2011-12 season at Rhode Island where he played in 16 games.

How To Tune-In
• Saturday's game will be broadcast live on Fox Sports 2 with Jim Spanarkel and Scott Graham on the call. Viewers can watch Fox Sports 2 on Time Warner Cable (132), Verizon FiOS (198), DirecTV (618), Dish Network (398).
• Fans can listen live to all the action from "The Voice of the Purple Eagles" Todd Callen on WGR 550 AM and free online through Purple Eagles All-Access.

Season Openers
• NU is 10-10 in its last 20 season openers, including 5-3 in season openers on the road.
• The Purple Eagles' last road win to begin the season was at Binghamton (71-56) on Nov. 18, 2005.
• Niagara has lost its last two road season openers at Oregon State in 2012 and Auburn in 2009.

On The Court
Seton Hall Pirates (0-0, 0-0 Big East)
• Seton Hall is led by fourth-year head coach  Kevin Willard who is 49-49 as the Pirate coach.
• SHU was picked eighth in the new-look 10-team Big East.
• The Pirates return nine players, including three starters, from last season's 15-18 squad that finished 13th in the Big East with a 3-15 record. 
• Senior Fuquan Edwin was named to the Preseason All-Big East Second Team. Last season, Edwin led the team and was seventh in the Big East with 16.6 points per game, was second in the conference in steals with 2.4 per game and averaged 5.8 rebounds per game as he was named to the All-Big East Honorable Mention.
• Eugene Teague, Brandon Mobley and Brian Oliver are returners who will see a lot of playing team. The starting backcourt tandem will be freshman Jaren Sina  and redshirt-sophomore Sterling Gibbs, who transferred from Texas.

Against the Pirates (Seton Hall leads, 15-11)
• The last meeting between the teams was in 1991 when then-No. 24 Seton Hall defeated Niagara, 76-61. The teams have split the last four meetings.
• Niagara and Seton Hall have met twice in the NIT. Niagara lost in 1953, but won in the 1987 (it last win in the series).

Last Meeting - February 19, 1991
Niagara 61, Seton Hall 76

Against The Big East
• Niagara is 62-148 against the current members of the Big East.
• The Purple Eagles have played St. John's the most and have the most wins against the Red Storm.
• NU's 11 wins vs. SHU are the second most against the current Big East members.

Did You Know?
• The late Alex 'Boo' Ellis grabbed 26 rebounds against Seton Hall on Dec. 8, 1956 which are only the 10th most in program history. Ellis, the all-time leader in rebounds at Niagara, is on the single-game rebounding top 10 list seven times.

In-Season Classics
• Niagara is 14-14 participating in classics since the 2006-07 season.
• NU won the 2008 Philly Hoop Classic and the 2007 Cable Car Classic in Santa Clara, Calif.
• The Purple Eagles have faced teams like Auburn, Oregon State, Villanova and Missouri during this stretch.
• NU hosted its first-ever in-season classic at the Gallagher Center last season.

About The Coaches vs. Cancer Classic
• The Coaches vs. Cancer Classic (cvcclassic.com) is one of the most prestigious early-season college basketball tournaments. Twelve schools will compete in the event, with four of those teams serving as regional hosts. Regional round action takes place November 9-18, 2013 with the four hosts advancing to the championship rounds on November 22-23, 2013 at the new Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The remainder of the field will participate in a round-robin series at one of two sub host sites.
• The Coaches vs. Cancer program (www.coachesvscancer.org) is a nationwide collaboration between the American Cancer Society (cancer.org) and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC.org) that empowers basketball coaches, their teams, and local communities to make a difference in the fight against cancer.
• Niagara is playing in one of the four regional rounds (Newark) and will play in the subregional round hosted by Kent State from Nov. 21-23. The Purple Eagles will face USC Upstate, Western Carolina and Kent State.

Mason Earns All-MAAC Preseason First Team Honors
• Antoine Mason was named to the All-MAAC Preseason First Team as voted by the league's coaches.
• Mason's career-high of 18.7 points per game were second in the conference and he is the conference's returning leading scorer.
• Mason set career-highs in field goal percentage (44.1), free throw percentage (79.4) and 3-point percentage (31.5).
• Mason was a part of a dynamic sophomore duo that became the first pair of sophomores to reach the 1,000-point club in program and MAAC history, and was the first set of sophomores to be named to the All-MAAC First Team in league history.
• Mason was named to the NABC Division I All-District 1 team and was the only Purple Eagle named to the MAAC All-Tournament Team.

Jordan On The Verge Of 1,000 Points
• Senior Marvin Jordan needs 24 points to become the 44th member of the 1,000-Point Club at Niagara University.
• Jordan will be joining backcourt teammate Antoine Mason as the only current players with 1,000 points.

Jordan Climbing NU's 3-Pointers Chart
• Marvin Jordan enters the season third all-time at Niagara in career 3-pointers with 215.
• Jordan is five treys from tying Lorenzo Miles ('07) for second all-time and needs 75 triples to tie Tyrone Lewis ('10) for first.
• Jordan holds the Niagara freshman (77) and sophomore (83) single-season 3-point records.