Game #1 • at Saint Joseph's
Monday, Nov. 4 • 7 p.m.
Hagan Arena • Philadelphia, Pa. 

Five Starting Notes
1 – Navy will be starting its 118th season of basketball.
2 – The last time Navy and Saint Joseph's met was March 14, 1959, in the NCAA Tournament's regional third place game in Charlotte, N.C.
3 – Saint Joseph's head coach Billy Lange served as the Navy head coach from 2004-05 through 2010-11.  This will be the first time a former Navy head coach faces the Mids.
4 – Navy will return to Philadelphia over the Thanksgiving holiday to participate in the Cathedral Classic at Penn.  
5 – The Mids have tallied a 53-92 record against Philadelphia Big 5 teams.

Game Information
•    Navy begins its 118th season of basketball with a Monday night game at Saint Joseph's.
•    Tip from Hagan Arena is slated for 7 p.m.
•    ESPN+ will carry a video stream of the game, with WNAV carrying the game on the radio.

Looking Ahead
•    Navy opens its home season Friday night when it plays host to Harvard in the second game of the Veterans Classic doubleheader (8:30 p.m.).  
•    Game one on Friday features Boston College vs. VCU.

Navy in Season Openers
•     Navy saw its three-year winning streak in season opening games come to an end last season with a 59-48 loss at Campbell.
•    The Mids have compiled a 6-6 record in season openers under Ed DeChellis.

About Navy
•     Navy returns five starters, nine letter winners and 19 players from last year's team. There are seven newcomers on the squad.
•     The Mids lost four letter winners and six players from last season.
•     The Mids posted an overall record of 13-18 and, with an 8-10 record, placed seventh in the Patriot League.
•    Navy was picked eighth in the 2024-25 Patriot League Preseason Poll.
•    Austin Benigni was named to the 2024-25 preseason all-league team.

Navy's Experience
•    Navy and Texas A&M are the only two schools in the country to return at least 70% of its points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals totals from last year.
•     Navy returns from 2023-24 (returning leader) ...
    83% of games played (31 / 4 players)
    77% of games started (31 / Austin Benigni)
    79% of minutes played (1,039 / Austin Benigni)
    80% of field goals made (165 / Austin Benigni)
    67% of 3-pt. field goals made (37 / Lysander Rehstrom)
    87% of free throws made (177 / Austin Benigni)
    87% of rebounds (283 / Donovan Draper)
    79% of assists (119 / Austin Benigni)
    94% of blocked shots (21 / Donovan Draper)
    80% of steals (59 / Donovan Draper)
    80% of points (180 / Austin Benigni)

Saint Joseph's Preview
•    Saint Joseph's is coming off of a 2023-24 season in which it compiled an overall record of 21-14, tied for seventh place in the 15-team Atlantic 10 Conference with a 9-9 record and advanced to the semifinals of the A10 Tournament
•    The Hawks would lose, 75-72, at Seton Hall in the first round of the NIT.
•    Saint Joseph's received five first place votes and placed third in the 2024-25 A10 Preseason Poll.
•    Individually, Erik Reynolds II received first-team honors, Xzayvier Brown was named to the second team and Rasheer Fleming was placed on the third team of the 2024-25 preseason all-conference team.

Billy Lange to Face Navy
•    The Hawks are coached by Billy Lange, who served as the Navy head coach for seven years from the 2004-05 through 2010-11 seasons.
•    The Mids posted a 93-114 record overall and a 43-55 mark in Patriot League play under Lange.  He was named the 2008 Patriot League Coach of the Year when the Mids placed second in the league with a 9-5 record that was part of an overall mark of 16-14.

Series History
•    Navy leads the series with Saint Joseph's by a 5-1 count.  
•    The teams first met on Jan. 29, 1919, with the Mids winning, 49-20.  The site of that inaugural game is unknown by both schools, as are the following two games in the series played during the 1919-20 and 1920-21 seasons. 
•    The teams then met in Annapolis on Feb. 22, 1922, and didn't play again until a Feb. 9, 1955 game on The Yard.
•    Navy would win a 70-56 decision over Saint Joseph's in the east regional third-place game of the 1959 NCAA Tournament.  The game was played in the Charlotte Coliseum in Charlotte, N.C.
•    Monday's game is the first by the teams in 23,977 days.
•    The last time the teams met, the average price of gas was $0.31, the number one song in the US was Venus by Frankie Avalon and the number one movie at the box office was Sleeping Beauty.

On This Date
•    This will be Navy's first game to be played on Nov. 4. It is the earliest Navy has started a season.

Against This State
•    Navy has posted a 389-267 record in games played against opponents located in Pennsylvania.
•    This includes a 53-92 record against the Philadelphia Big 5 schools.

In This State
•    Navy has posted a 76-139 record in games played in Pennsylvania.  
•    This includes a 14-52 record in games played in the Philadelphia area.
•    The Mids have tallied a 14-47 record in road games against Big 5 teams.

Navy vs. Atlantic 10 Conference
•    Navy has posted a 64-91 overall record against current Atlantic 10 teams, as well as an 11-42 record in road games against the A10.
  
Veterans Classic
•    Navy will play host to the 11th edition of the Veterans Classic on Friday, Nov. 8.
•    This year's games feature Boston College vs. VCU and Harvard vs. Navy.
•    Traditionally held on or around the Veterans Day holiday weekend, the event pays tribute to veterans of all our armed forces.
•    The three visiting teams immerse themselves in the USNA on Thursday through tours of ship simulators, helicopters, and ships.  They then eat lunch in King Hall with members of the Brigade of Midshipmen.
•    Veterans of all service branches are honored during the course of the doubleheader.

From the Veterans Classic to the NBA
•     17 Veterans Classic alumni were on NBA rosters at the start of the 2024-25 NBA season.
•    That brings the total number of Veterans Classic players to advance to the NBA to 37.

Veterans Classic Players on 2024-25 NBA Rosters (as of opening night)
Jamison Battle (George Washington / 2020) - Toronto
David Duke (Providence / 2018) - San Antonio
Bruno Fernando (Maryland / 2018) - Toronto
Dorian Finney-Smith (Florida / 2015) - Brooklyn
Sam Hauser (Marquette / 2016) - Boston
Herbert Jones (Alabama / 2017) - New Orleans
Luke Kornet (Vanderbilt / 2016) - Boston
Tristen Newton (East Carolina / 2019) - Indiana
Isaac Okoro (Auburn / 2019) - Cleveland
Micah Potter (Ohio State / 2016) - Utah
Josh Richardson (Tennessee / 2014) - Miami
Marcus Sasser (Houston / 2022) - Detroit
Jamal Shead (Houston / 2022) - Toronto
Jalen Smith (Maryland / 2018) - Chicago
Jae'Sean Tate (Ohio State / 2016) - Houston
Jarace Walker (Houston / 2022) - Indiana
Aaron Wiggins (Maryland / 2018) - Oklahoma City

Missing Home
•    Navy's Nov. 8 game against Harvard begins a five-game homestand.  After the team's Nov. 25 game against Washington (Md.), the Mids will not return to Alumni Hall until they open Patriot League play on Jan. 2 against American.
•    Navy will go 38 days between home games, which is the second-longest span between home games in program history.  It also marks the 12th time in school history in which Navy will go at least 30 days between home games.
•     It also is tied for third for the most consecutive regular season games played away from Annapolis (seven).
•     Navy will travel the second-most one-way miles for weekday Patriot League regular season games this season.
•    Conversely, the Mids will travel the third fewest one-way miles for weekend league games.
•     Navy is the only team slated to travel on its first, second and third-longest road games of the league season on weekday games.  The Mids will play weekday games at Boston U., Colgate and Holy Cross this season.

Rehnstrom is Captain of the Captains
•    Lysander Rehnstrom was selected as the captain of the Navy basketball team for the 2024-25 season in a vote by the members of the team.
•    All Navy team captains participated in a leadership weekend at Gettysburg in June 2024 in preparation for the upcoming year.  At the conclusion of the trip, Rehnstrom was voted as the "Captain of the Captains," or more officially the Athletic Team Commander.
•    This leadership role was first established in the 2005-06 academic year.  Rehnstrom joins Cam Davis (2020-21) as men's basketball players to hold the position.

DeChellis Wins No. 400
•    Navy's 2024 Patriot League Tournament first round victory over Loyola was the 400th in the 28-year head coaching career of Ed DeChellis.
•    DeChellis enters the 2024-25 season as one of 18 active head coaches with at least 800 games as a head coach on the Division I level.

Davis Leads Patriot League Coaches
•     Navy assistant coach Emmett Davis is in his 30th    season as a Patriot League coach. That leads all men's    basketball coaches for the most Patriot League seasons in a career.
•    Davis also coached at Navy for five seasons (1987-91)
    prior to the Mids joining the Patriot League.
•     The Patriot League is in its 35th season of sponsoring    men's basketball (began 1990-91).
•    Davis also ranks third among active assistant coaches for the most years as an assistant at one school.

Navy Bench Has Been a Strength
•    The Mids have received an average of at least 20 points a game from their bench since the start of the 2020-21 campaign.
•    Navy ranked fourth in the Patriot League and 149th nationally in bench scoring during the 2023-24 season (20.06 ppg).

Navy Good Again on the Offensive Boards 
•     Navy has been very good over the last number of years at winning the offensive rebound margin.
•    The Mids ranked first in the Patriot League and 40th nationally during the 2023-24 season with an average of 12.45 offensive rebounds per game.

Second-Chance Points 
•    Navy has scored more second-chance points than its foes in 195 of the 295 games (66.1%) it has played since the start of the 2014-15 season.  

Three-Point Plays 
•    Austin Benigni and Donovan Draper lead the team for the most career three-point play opportunities.

At the FT Line – Austin Benigni
•    Austin Benigni led the Patriot League and was among the national leaders in free throws made and attempted during the 2023-24 season.
•    The then-sophomore totaled 177 made free throws (22nd in the NCAA) on 209 attempts (38th).
•    The gave him a free throw percentage of 84.7 percent, which ranked second in the league and 96th nationally.
•    He also ranked among the Navy sophomore class leaders for the most free throws made and attempted and the best free throw percentage.

Benigni Scoring In Double Figures
•    Austin Benigni set a new school standard for the most games by a Mid with scoring 10 or more points in 18 league games during an 18-game Patriot League season (2014-15 to 2019-20, 2021-22 to present).

Draper's Boards and Steals
•    Donovan Draper spent the 2021-22 academic year as a football player at the Naval Academy Prep School.  He then was wide receiver at Navy on the 2022-23 team.
•    Draper, who was an all-county basketball player in high school, joined the Navy basketball team in the spring of 2023.
•    After going 994 days between his last high school basketball game and first as a Mid, he made an immediate impact as he ranked among the Patriot League and NCAA leaders in multiple statistical categories. 
•    Navy scored on 47 of the 90 (52.2%) possessions in which Draper grabbed an offensive rebound during the 2023-24 season.
•    Draper's defensive rebound average (6.0 drpg) in 2023-24 ranked second by a Mid in a season since it became an official statistics with the 1986-87 season, and was second for most total defensive boards.
•    Draper grabbed 10 or more rebounds in 14 games last season.  That is the most by a Mid during Navy's Patriot League era.
•    Draper also ranked among the leaders for the most double-doubles during Navy's Patriot League era with  10.

In the Family - USNA
•      Several Mids have had relatives graduate from the USNA.
•    Julian King
    -- Cousin, Bill Simmons Jr., Class of 1985
•    Kam Summers
    -- Brother, Greg Summers, Class of 2022
•    Reiss Whitaker
    -- Dad, Kylor Whitaker, Class of 1986

In the Family - Sports
•      A number of Mids have had relatives who played collegiate or professional sports.
•    Austin Benigni
    -- Mom, Jessica Benigni - Clearwater Christian, softball
•    David Burnett
    -- Dad, David Burnett - Morehouse, basketball
•    Cam Cole
    -- Dad, Roland Cole - Howard, basketball
    -- Uncle, Ricky Cole - Georgia Tech, track
    -- Cousin, Ricky Cole III - Football, Wagner / SMU
    -- Uncle, Carlton Myers - Boston U., football
    -- Cousin, Aria Myers - NJIT, basketball
•    Mitch Fischer
    -- Sister, Addie Fischer - Villanova, lacrosse
•    Julian Gabbidon
    -- Brother, Jalen Gabbidon - Yale / Colorado, basketball
•    Owen Gray
    -- Dad, Troy Gray - Richmond, basketball
•    Nyles Howard
    -- Dad, Roderick Howard - Charlotte, basketball
    -- Brother, Fletcher Jackson, Bridgewater, basketball
•    Cooper Jackson
    -- Dad, Tommy Jackson - Wake Forest, football
•    Carnegie Johnson
    -- Brother, Cassius Johnson - San Diego, football
    -- Brother, Cornelius Johnson - Michigan, football
•    Aidan Kehoe
    -- Sister, Molly Kehoe - New Orleans, volleyball **
•    Jinwoo Kim
    -- Cousin, Justin Kim - Princeton, baseball **
    -- Sister, Hope Kim - St. Louis, soccer **
•    Sam Krist
    -- Dad, Stephen Krist - West Virginia, track & CC
•    Jack Medalie
    -- Grandfather, Tom Parker - Kentucky, basketball
    -- Great Uncle, Harry Parker - 6 years in MLB
    -- Cousin, Jim McConkey - Davidson, basketball
•    Jordan Pennick
    -- Sister, Morgan Pennick - Stevenson, basketball
•    Lysander Rehnstrom
    -- Dad, Doug Rehnstrom - Shippensburg, basketball
•    Sean Rose
    -- Grandfather, Anthony Rose - Clemson, football
    -- Uncle, Cameron Rose - Clemson, track**
•    Kam Summers
    -- Dad, Greg Summers - South Florida, basketball
    -- Mom, Kristi Summers - South Florida, tennis
    -- Brother, Greg Summers - Navy, basketball
•    Reiss Whitaker
    -- Dad, Reiss Whitaker - Navy, basketball
•    Mike Woods
    -- Brother, Mark Woods - Fairmont State, football
** = active