Game Notes (PDF)


HIGHLIGHTS:
•           NJIT leads the Great West Conference in both scoring offense (71.6 ppg) and scoring defense (59.0 ppg).
•           The Highlanders field-goal percentage defense (.353) is ranked 11th in the country after holding St. John's to 36.7 percent shooting (22-60). The Red Storm had entered connecting at a 48.6-percent clip – and blazed at 55.9-percent (66-118) in its prior two games.
•           NJIT has posted a +7.7 rebounding margin this season and is ranked 11^th in the country at 43.7 rebounds per game (after finishing tied for 141^st with 35.0 rpg last season). Over the past two campaigns, the Highlanders are 15-6 (.714) when they out-rebound their opponent.
•           This marks NJIT's third of four games this season against a BIG EAST foe. So far, they've dropped a couple of close affairs – losing 64-63 at Providence College on Nov. 10 and 57-49 at St. John's on Dec. 1.


NEWARK, N.J. -- The Highlanders (4-3) play their second off two consecutive BIG EAST road games when they square off against Seton Hall (5-2) in Newark on Tuesday. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at the Prudential Center.

This will be NJIT's fourth all-time meeting with Seton Hall, with all three prior contests taking place at The Rock over the past three seasons. Last year on Dec. 6, 2011, the Highlanders tied the score at 36-36 with 19:16 remaining in the second half before an eventual 78-48 loss. Previously, the Pirates knocked off the Highlanders in 2009 (93-53) and in 2010 (68-45).

It is not be so surprising that a team which transitioned into Division I just seven seasons ago would drop its first 13 all-time contests against opponents from the BIG EAST, one of the most prolific conferences in NCAA basketball. However, over its last four tries – two this season – NJIT has provided a scare by holding at least a tie in the second half of all four contests.

Sixteen days after forcing a tie early in the second stanza in their last bout with the Pirates, the Highlanders built a 40-32 lead with 18:31 remaining in their game at Rutgers on Dec. 22. Although they eventually lost, 77-53, the Highlanders' eight-point lead was the largest they'd ever held in the second half against a BIG EAST opponent. The only other time they led by eight points in a BIG EAST game was in their first-ever attempt on Dec. 21, 2006, when they held early leads of 11-3 and 14-6 at St. John's before the second media timeout.

This season, NJIT took a 63-62 lead in the opener at Providence College with 4:17 remaining – the latest the program had ever led against a BIG EAST foe. The Highlanders wound up losing, 64-63, on a free throw by the conference's current leading scorer Bryce Cotton with :05 left in regulation.

In their previous game this past Saturday, the Highlanders set a new program-high when they led by 14 points at St. John's – going up 37-23 on a jumper for freshman F Terrence Smith :30 into the second half. The Highlanders led as late as 6:25 remaining in the game before the Red Storm ended on a 13-2 run for a 57-49 victory.

Prior to that loss, the Highlanders had won three-consecutive games – all at Fleisher Athletic Center – including the program's first victories against a teams from the America East (New Hampshire) and Mid-Eastern Athletic (South Carolina State) Conferences.

Against the Red Storm, senior F Ryan Woods paced the Highlanders with 16 points to go along with a career-high three blocks and a career-high tying eight rebounds. Smith (10 points, 10 rebounds) registered the first double-double of his career and the first by a Highlander in a D-I game this season. The 6-6 Floridian also paced NJIT with a career-high four blocks.

Senior G Chris Flores finished with 10 points and a game-high six assists. The Preseason 2012-13 GWC Player of the Year is averaging a conference-best 17.4 points per game and has already won two of the four GWC Player of the Week awards this season. He tied a D-I program record by posting 28 points at Providence.

But Flores is not the only Highlander atop the leaderboards. Smith, who has made a significant splash in his NCAA debut season, leads the GWC at 8.1 rebounds per game and ranks eighth in the nation among freshman. Meanwhile, senior G PJ Miller holds a share of the conference lead in assists (4.1 apg) and is tops in steals (2.0 spg).

Senior F Ryan Woods, a Staten Island native, is second on the team in both scoring (13.4 ppg) and rebounding (5.1 rpg).

The Highlanders have only lost by a total of 12 points in their three losses this season, with all three defeats coming on the road. In those games, the Highlanders have had to work around a 72-38 foul deficit – which included a 24-12 mark on Saturday.

At 4-3, NJIT is off to the best start in its Division I era (since 2006-07). Previously, the fastest the Highlanders ever achieved four wins was last season – when they won in Game 9 to go to 4-5 on Dec. 12, 2011.

NJIT is seeking its sixth D-I road win excluding teams that comprise the GWC. The Highlanders have won at Manhattan (11/11/06), Longwood (2/19/07), Wagner (12/28/09), Farleigh Dickinson (2/1/11) and Army (11/30/11).


HALL MARKS:

The Pirates (5-2) will be looking to return to their winning ways following a 72-67 road loss at Louisiana State (5-0) on Thursday as part of the SEC-BIG EAST Challenge. Prior to that, Seton Hall had won three consecutive games after its only other defeat of the season to Washington – an 84-73 OT loss – during the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn.

Seton Hall earned an NIT bid a season ago after posting a 21-13 overall record during Head Coach Kevin Willard's second season. However, the team has been forced to adjust following the loss of its top two scorers last year in seniors Justin Theodore and Herb Pope.

Junior F Fuquan Edwin has assumed a bulk of the scoring duties, averaging 17.9 ppg – eighth in the BIG EAST -- while contributing 6.0 rpg. The 6-6 Paterson native fouled out against LSU with just seven points, but had double-digit scoring totals in each of his first six games. A terrific defender that nearly posted a double-double against NJIT last season (14 points, 9 rebounds), Edwin ranks tied for 11^th in the nation with 3.0 steals per game.

Following the departure of Pope – who pounded the Highlanders with 25 points last season – junior transfer Eugene Teague has provided the Pirates a large presence in the paint. The 6-9, 290-pound former Southern Illinois Saluki is second on the team in scoring (13.4 ppg) while averaging a team-best 8.4 rpg – a figure that ranks fifth in the BIG EAST.

Freshman G Tom Maayan, a native of Israel, has been impressive running point – averaging 4.4 assists per game (T-9^th in the BIG EAST) and 2.4 spg (T-4^th in BIG EAST).

Seton Hall has been extremely successful in knocking down threes, as the Pirates have connected at a BIG EAST-leading 39.9 percent rate – which lists at 33^rd best in the country.


Fans can follow all the action live on www.njithighlanders.com, which will carry a live webcast play-by-play and commentary from Matt Provence. Audio coverage begins at 6:45 p.m. with tip-off set for 7 p.m.


Write-up courtesy of Matt Provence