GAME NOTES: The Siena Saints are looking to build off last season's College Basketball Invitational championship when they visit the Massachusetts Minutemen in the season opener on Friday.

Jimmy Patsos led the Saints to a surprising postseason run in his first year at the helm, and wins over Stony Brook, Penn State and Illinois State in the CBI tournament preceded them knocking off Fresno State in the finals.

This season has gotten off to a sour note, however, with senior Imoh Silas ruled out for the season with a torn ACL suffered in practice. The 6-foot-9 center from Nigeria started 53 of the 68 games he played the last two seasons.

The good news is that both double-digit scorers -- Rob Poole and Brett Bisping -- from a season ago are back, as is interior enforcer Lavon Long and the top passer, Marquis Wright. Poole comes back after posting 14.6 ppg and 5.0 rpg, while Bisping is hoping to improve upon his 11.5 ppg and 6.5 rpg. Long (9.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg) could have had much better numbers if not for the fact that he fouled out of 13 contests, while Wright (8.7 ppg) would rather get teammates involved with 199 assists than take shots from 3-point range (.184).

Siena is looking to advance where UMass did last season -- the NCAA Tournament. The Minutemen rolled to a 24-9 record and reached the tourney as a No. 6 seed before losing to Tennessee in their first game.

The early exit also saw the end of Chaz Williams' career in Amherst, and with it his team-highs of 15.6 ppg, 6.9 apg and 1.6 spg. Also missing from the squad are Sampson Carter and Raphael Putney, who combined for nearly 20 points and over 10 rebounds per game. Derrick Gordon (9.4 ppg) will be called upon to be the primary option in the backcourt. He is a solid finisher (.478 FG percentage) but he does not shoot well from the free-throw line (.528) and took just four shots from beyond the arc all last season. Trey Davis (2.6 ppg, 2.5 apg) is the next man up at point guard and will become a starter after playing only 9.2 minutes per game in 33 contests in 2013-14. Cady Lalanne (11.3 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 2.2 bpg) is a stud in the middle, with his ability to score, rebound and block shots. He is the major building block for the team, which has its sights set on a fourth straight 20-win campaign. Jabarie Hinds, a transfer from West Virginia, could be an important contributor as well.

This is a stiff early test for both programs. The Saints have their work cut out for them in a hostile environment like Mullins Center, but they proved last March they revel as underdogs. If Patsos can find a serviceable fill-in for Silas, UMass' 10-game winning streak over MAAC opponents may be in jeopardy.