NEWARK, NJ—Andrew Gonzalez scored 19 of his game-high 31 points in the second half, leading Houston Baptist to a come-from-behind 62-58 win over NJIT in men's basketball Thursday night in the Prudential Center.

Houston Baptist (7-19, 6-2 Great West Conference) trailed by nine points, 31-22, at halftime but outscored the home team in the second half, 40-27.

Gonzalez, a junior forward who leads the Great West in scoring at 17.8 points per game, got 14 of his points against NJIT at the foul line, including two free throws with less than five seconds remaining that sealed the win for the Huskies. Gonzalez was 14-for-16 at the line, leading HBU, which shot 21-23 on free throws, compared to 6-for-15 for NJIT.

The 31 points were a career high for Gonzalez, a junior college transfer who had scored 30 earlier this season in December against Fairleigh Dickinson.

Senior guard Wendell Preadom added 17 points—13 in the second half—for HBU, which did not have any other double-figure scorers, but which got seven rebounds, six assists, and seven steals from junior guard Michael Moss.

NJIT (7-15, 2-3 Great West), which sustained its first home conference loss, got 19 points from sophomore guard Isaiah Wilkerson, 15 points and five assists from junior guard Jheryl Wilson and 12 points from freshman guard Chris Flores. Wilkerson, the NJIT captain, was back in the lineup after missing the previous two games resting a foot injury.

The Highlanders, who never trailed in the first half, claimed their biggest lead of the game, 17-5, on Wilson's jump shot with 11:08 left in the first half and they led 31-22 at halftime, paced by nine points each from Wilson and Wilkerson. Gonzalez had 12 points at the break.

Houston Baptist opened the second half with a 19-3 run in the first 6:19 and took what would be its biggest lead, 41-34, on a tip-in for Damian Lewis at 13:41.

The Highlanders climbed back into the game and took their final lead, 54-53, on a Flores layup with 3:50 left.

Gonzalez responded with five points unanswered points over the next 32 seconds for Houston Baptist. But the outcome remained in doubt until the final five seconds, when NJIT's Wilkerson, with the Highlanders trailing, 52-50, shot an open three-point try from the right corner that rimmed in and then out to Gonzalez, who controlled the defensive rebound and was fouled, setting up his clinching free throws.

Houston Baptist played without center Mario Flaherty, who had scored 30 points in the Huskies' 75-62 home win over NJIT last month. The senior, who is out with mononucleosis, remained home in Houston for the return game.

Despite his absence, the Huskies outscored NJIT in the paint, 28-22, which doesn't include their 15-point edge at the foul line.

That differential at the foul line was balanced off by NJIT's long-range shooting, as the Highlanders connected on eight of 17 from three-point distance, compared to 1-for-7 for HBU.

NJIT which plays all of its remaining games in the Great West Conference, will try to get back on track Saturday, when it hosts Texas-Pan American at 4 pm in the Estelle and Zoom Fleisher Athletic Center.

UTPA defeated the Highlanders, 66-53, on January 14 in Texas.