Box Score
CHESTNUT HILL, MA—Boston College, which had been upset in its previous game, made sure there would be no repeats Tuesday night, outplaying visiting NJIT in every facet of the game en route to an 89-32 men's basketball victory.
Rakim Sanders, a burly, 6-5, 230-pound wing player who combines the strength to power his way to the basket with a feathery jump shot, led all scorers with 21 points in 25 minutes for BC. He shot 9-for-13 from the field and made 3 of 4 three-point tries.
Joe Trapani added 18 points and a game-high 8 rebounds for the Eagles and Reggie Jackson chipped in 15 points.
For NJIT, Isaiah Wilkerson and Jheryl Wilson shared the scoring lead, with 11 points apiece. Wilkerson's four rebounds paced the Highlanders on the boards. Freshman Sean McCarthy, a native of nearby Scituate, blocked three BC shots in his first college game in his home state.
The Highlanders have shown definite signs of improvement throughout the first half of the 2009-10 season and they were coming off of a strong effort in losing to a good Lehigh team, 86-79, at Lehigh over the weekend.
But Boston College, now 10-5, plays in the vaunted Atlantic Coast Conference, where it must face the likes of North Carolina and Duke, among other national powers, on an annual basis and the Eagles have a roster that is designed to meet that challenge.
Putting its ACC membership aside, BC has a long, rich heritage that includes 18 all-time trips to the NCAA Division I Tournament (including 2009) and 10 more berths in the National Invitation Tournament.
The Eagles had played far below expectations and shot poorly in a 52-51 loss over the weekend against Maine, a school that is supposed to compete with BC in ice hockey, but not on the hardwood. It was Boston College's third upset loss at home this season.
Given that background, it was unlikely the favored Eagles would take the underdog Highlanders lightly.
NJIT stayed close for a few minutes, coming back from an early 7-2 deficit to go ahead 10-7 on a driving layup by Wilkerson 3:58 into the game.
That would be the crowning moment of the night for NJIT, however. The Highlanders' first five buckets came from in close and once BC took control of the lane, NJIT, having an off night from the perimeter, was helpless, managing just one field goal and four points the rest of the half.
Boston College, unstoppable around the basket from the outset, began hitting from the outside after a few minutes and ran off 16 unanswered points between 15:46 and 11:21, turning a 10-7 deficit into a 23-10 lead in just over four minutes.
The onslaught never abated and the Eagles, who shot 60 percent from the field (18-30), including 4-for-5 on three-pointers, ran out to a 45-14 halftime lead, headed by Trapani's 15 points.
Already holding an insurmountable lead, BC hit its first eight shots, including three three-pointers, and piled 20 more points onto its score in the first 4:35 of the second half.
Showing how quickly fortunes can change, NJIT had set a new program high for points against a Division I opponent (79) and tied the school Division I record for three-point baskets made, with nine at Lehigh on Saturday. Three days later at Boston College, the Highlanders shot 1-for-14 from behind the arc, many on decent looks, and were held to a season-low scoring total.
With 14 regular season games remaining, plus the postseason Great West Conference tournament, NJIT will move on and play again, quickly. The Highlanders' next game id on Saturday at 2 pm vs. Yale in New Haven, Connecticut.
