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With the calendar turned to 2011, NJIT returns home on Tuesday at 7 pm to face its most formidable non-conference home opponent of the season in Lehigh, the defending Patriot League champion.
The Mountain Hawks, who competed in the 2010 NCAA Division I Tournament, began this season in stop-and-go fashion, not winning more than two straight or losing more than two straight in a start that found them at 4-5 after a loss at Quinnipiac on December 7.
Since then, however, Lehigh has four of the last five and, having won its last two, will aim for its first three-game winning streak of the season when it visits NJIT. Three of the four most recent wins have been by double-digit margins and the only loss came at USC in Los Angeles.
The top player for Lehigh is sophomore CJ McCollum at 21 points per game. McCollum burst on the scene last year at the top scoring freshman in the nation (19.1 ppg) and was the first player in Patriot League history named Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year in the same season. He also leads this year's team in rebounding (6.9 rpg).
Senior Michael Ojo averages 12.4 ppg and sophomore Gabe Knutson chips in 11.6 ppg and 6.1 rpg. Knutson is 6-foot-8, while Ojo is 6-5 and McCollum is 6-3.
Lehigh leads the all-time series between the schools, 3-0, including a thrilling 86-79 win last January 2 in Bethlehem, PA. Knutson scored 23 and McCollum 18 that night, while NJIT had four double-figure scorers. Jheryl Wilson tied the NJIT Division I records for points (27) and field goals (10); Isaiah Wilkerson scored a season-high 22 points and set school Division I records for free throws made (14) and attempted (16); Chris Flores added 14 points; and, Sammy Schickel came off the NJIT bench for 11 points.
NJIT, meanwhile, is still looking for consistency in nearly all facets of its game. Last week's action illustrated that lack of consistency. On January 28, facing a Long Island University team expected to finish near the top of the Northeast Conference, the Highlanders were far from flawless, but showed some encouraging signs in an 89-82 loss. The 82 points were the most scored for NJIT against a Division I opponent this year and the Highlanders made better than 50 percent of their shots from floor, outscoring the Blackbirds on field goals, 72-58, only to lose on free throws, 31-10.
Two nights later, against St. Francis, picked by Northeast Conference coaches to finish in the bottom half of that league, NJIT managed just 47 points, only two more than its season-low and shot 35 percent from the field. At the same time, the Terrieers scored 72 points, despite getting just two points at the foul line.
Lack of consistency has troubled the individual Highlanders, as well. Only Chris Flores has put together more than two double-figure scoring games back-to-back and even that three-game streak of doubles came in November. Aside from Flores, the only Highlanders with consecutive double-figure scoring games are Jheryl Wilson, Isaiah Wilkerson, Arjun Ohri, and Lamar Kearse. All four have one set of back-to-back doubles apiece.
As far as season averages go, Wilson, who was the only NJIT player to shoot well at St. Francis (19 pts, 8-12 FG), leads the team in scoring (11.1 ppg). Wilkerson adds 10.5 ppg and a team-leading 5.2 rebounds a game (Wilson is second at 4.8 rpg). Flores averages 9.8 ppg and Kearse 9 ppg.
The Lehigh game begins a stretch of four home games in a row for the Highlanders, who are 2-3 at home this season after posting an 8-4 mark on Fleisher Family Court last season. The three home losses this season have been close—75-70 vs. Manhattan; 63-60 vs. Army on a buzzer-beating heave from just past center court; and 89-82 vs. LIU.
Fans unable to make the game can follow all the action live on www.njithighlanders.com, which will carry a webcast play-by-play and commentary from Matt Provence, as well as an in-game real-time stat feed.
