Box Score
HOUSTON – NJIT scored a season-high 83 points Saturday evening recording its first Great West Conference victory, 83-70, over Houston Baptist at Sharp Gymnasium in women's basketball action.
Given the 83 points, the Highlanders had three double-figure scorers Saturday paced by junior Jessica Gerald with a season-high 30 points. Gerald was nearly perfect from the field shooting 8-for-9 and connected on 5-of-6 from behind the arc. The guard, who leads the Great West Conference from the free throw line (86 percent), finished the contest 9-for-13.
The other two double-figure scorers for NJIT were Ivana Seric and Kehinde Oyelola. Seric finished with her second career double-double --17 points, 10 rebounds. Seric was one-point shy her career-record (18 vs. Utah Valley 3/8/08). Her 10 rebounds was a game-high, collecting eight off the defensive glass. Kehinde chipped in 13 points and seven rebounds off the bench for NJIT. Freshman Rayven Johnson grabbed nine rebounds.
For Houston Baptist, Raquel Jones was the top scorer with 22 points (15 from behind the arc), followed by Taniqua Hollis (14 points) and Destini Texada (12 points). Texada led the Huskies with nine rebounds.
The Highlanders (6-11, 1-1 GWC), scored 38 first-half points, and exploded on a 20-0 run sparked by Kehinde's free throws at 10:10, to break a 16-16 tie. Guard Emily Schartner had seven points in the Highlander run, a career-high for the freshman. Houston Baptist's Mele Leasau broke the drought with 3:10 left in the half sinking two free throws, and Texada would score the next three points for the Huskies for a 36-21 score, in favor of the Highlanders.
Gerald led all scorers at half with nine points while Texada and Leasau each chipped in seven points apiece.
To start the second half, Houston Baptist's Jones came out on fire connecting on her first three shots from behind the arc slimming the Highlander lead to 12, 44-32, at the 17:40 mark. NJIT's Gerald answered on the opposite end with a three-pointer of her own, pushing the Highlander lead back to 15.
Just under the 10-minute mark, Raquel scored her fifth three-pointer of the contest cutting Houston Baptist's deficit to nine, 62-53 but the Highlanders rallied off seven quick points, 69-53, on a jumper by point guard Melanie Griffin with 7:35 left.
Houston Baptist (2-15, 0-2 GWC) would go on a brief 7-0 spurt on Hollis's free throw at 5:51, pulling the Huskies within nine, 5:50. The Huskies made one last charge and closed the NJIT gap to eight, 74-66, on a free throw by Dominique Mayberry, with 1:25 remaining in the game but the Highlanders would score its remaining seven points from the free throw line in the final 1:05.
Free throw shooting made a huge difference in the outcome. The Highlanders outscored the Huskies at the foul line, 25-18, but the margin could have been wider. NJIT was 25-for-36 while Houston Baptist shot 18-for-35.
NJIT will have a week break and return to action when they host Chicago State in a Great West Conference match-up on Saturday at 2pm in the Estelle and Zoom Fleisher Athletic Center. The Cougars lead the all-time series, 3-1.
