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NEWARK, NJ—The NJIT men's basketball team looks to build a new winning streak as it hosts UMass Lowell Saturday at 2 pm in the Estelle and Zoom Fleisher Athletic Center. The Highlanders will try to follow Wednesday night's win over Maine with another win against the visiting River Hawks.
 
The Highlanders (5-4) began the season with road losses at Tulane and UAlbany, but then won the next three games on the road in a span of five days, knocking off Army, New Hampshire and Maine. T
 
he winning streak continued in NJIT's home opener, a 91-88 overtime victory against Lafayette. Next came a pair of losses around Thanksgiving, as the Highlanders fell to Central Connecticut and then against UAlbany in a rematch. But NJIT went back above .500 with a home win of another rematch, topping Maine for the second time this season.
 
UMass Lowell is 1-7 in its first year playing a Division I schedule. The River Hawks, who are at the same stage this season as NJIT was in 2006-07, reclassifying from Division II and not eligible for Division I postseason championship play for several more years (UMass Lowell has been a long-time member of Division I in ice hockey, but its other teams were in Division II).
 
NJIT and UMass Lowell have never competed against each other in their current institutional form. However, what is now known as UMass Lowell was formed in 1975 by the merger of Lowell Technological Institute (Lowell Tech) and Lowell State College and the institution took its current name in 1991 (was the University of Lowell after the merger). Today, Lowell Tech's campus before the merger is the North Campus of UMass Lowell.
 
NJIT, then known as Newark College of Engineering and competing in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, played against Lowell Tech in 1957-58 (Lowell won, 75-69) and in 1962-63 (NCE won, but the score is not known).  
 
More relevant to the present, UMass Lowell, 15-13 last year in its last season of Division II competition, played its first game in Division I competition against 2013 Division I championship game runner-up Michigan and lost 69-42. The River Hawks have also lost to traditional national power Cincinnati, as well as to New England foes Boston University, Dartmouth, Brown, and Rhode Island, and their most recent game was a 67-58 loss on Tuesday to St. Bonaventure in upstate New York.
 
UMass Lowell's win this season came against Division III Mt. Ida. The River Hawks will take on NJIT twice in 2013-14—Saturday in Newark and then on February 3 in Massachusetts.
 
Pat Duquette, who spent 13 years as the top assistant at Boston College and three years in the same role at Northeastern, is in his first year at the helm in Lowell.
 
The team has three men averaging double-figure scoring, led senior guard Akeem Williams, an all-region performer last year in Division II, who is getting 14.4 ppg in his first DI season. Chad Holley, a junior, averages 13.5 ppg and sophomore DJ Mlachnik chips in 12.1 ppg.
 
NJIT put four men in double-figure scoring in the latest 81-72 win over Maine. It was the eighth time in nine games the Highlanders had at least four double-figure scorers.
For the season, freshman Damon Lynn is averaging a team-best 20.1 points. Including 35 3-point baskets. Forward Terrence Smith averages 14.7 points and a team-best 5.9 rebounds, while connecting on nearly 59 percent for his shots from the floor (57-99) and 86 percent of his foul shots (18-21).
 
Sophomore Winfield Willis, who has played in all 9 games with 2 starts, including the last one vs. Maine, is averaging 10.1 points.
 
Matt Provence, voice of NJIT men's basketball, will be in the play-by-play chair for NJITHighlanders.com describing all the action live.