Iona, 14-7 overall and 8-2 in the MAAC, is led senior guard Lamont Jones, who is contributing a league-high 22.3 points along with 3.8 assists per game, and junior guard Sean Armand, who is posting 18.4 points and 5.3 rebounds an outing for the Gaels.

Niagara, 13-8 overall and 9-1 in the MAAC, is led by redshirt sophomore guard Antoine Mason, who is registering 18.1 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, and sophomore guard Juan'ya Green, who is averaging 16.0 points and 5.0 assists an outing for the Purple Eagles.

Iona won the first meeting this season with an 83-72 victory over Niagara on Nov. 28, 2012 at the Hynes Center in New Rochelle, New York. Armand posted his first career double-double with 18 points and a career-high 11 rebounds while adding in five assists on the night. Curtis Dennis had 17 points and Tre Bowman, Jones and Tavon Sledge all had 12. Sledge and Jones also had five assists each, with Sledge adding four steals. Mason led Niagara with 24 points, while Ameen Tanksley posted a double-double with 13 points and 11 boards. Iona trailed 14-11 when Armand hit a 3 to spark a 19-1 run. The Gaels led by as many as 16, 40-24, but the Purple Eagles slowly chipped the advantage to 67-62 with 5:27 left in the game. Iona hit 7 of 8 free-throw attempts in the final 4:04, including four by Jones.