ALBANY, NY—UAlbany commemorated its 2014 America East Conference men's basketball championship in a pregame ceremony Wednesday night. Then the current edition of the Great Danes went out and shut down an NJIT team that had scored 90 points two nights earlier, downing the visiting Highlanders 65-48 in UAlbany's home opener on campus in the SEFCU Arena.
 
NJIT (1-2) had one of its best shooting nights in its nine years of Division I competition, connecting on 58 percent of its shots in Monday's 90-86 home win against Maine.
 
Facing the two-time defending America East champ Great Danes, the Highlanders struggled to make shots, shooting just 28.3 percent (15-53) from the floor for the game and only 5-for-28 (18 percent) in the opening half.
 
The Great Danes, who had opened the season with a 64-60 loss on the road at 2014 BIG EAST Conference champion Providence, evened their record at 1-1 with the win over NJIT.
 
UAlbany got a game-high 15 points in 19 minutes off the bench from freshman guard Wheeler Baker. The rookie, who shot 3-for-5 on 3-pointers, also showed that he could take the ball to the basket, scoring on a driving one-handed dunk late in the game.
 
Blue collar senior Sam Rowley added 12 points and pulled down a game-best 8 rebounds for the winners and junior Peter Hooley chipped in 10 points and 6 rebounds. Mike Rowley, Sam's younger brother, and Evan Singletary each had 6 rebounds, as well, for the Great Danes, who held a 45-38 team advantage on the boards.
 
NJIT had two double-figure scorers, led by sophomore Damon Lynn's game-high 20 points, 13 of which came in the second half. Ky Howard, who was the only Highlander to make more than half of his attempts, shot 5-for-6 from the field and 3-for-4 at the foul line.
 
Howard, who is a guard, led NJIT in rebounding for the third time in as many games, grabbing 6 boards.
 
The Highlanders scored the game's first two points on a pair of Lynn free throws, but UAlbany scored the next 8 points and led the entire game after that.
 
The Great Danes, who do not concede easy shots, extended their lead to 36-17 at halftime, paced by 12 points from Sam Rowley and 10 from Baker.
 
NJIT, which shot much better in the second half than it had in the first, making 10-of-25 shots over the final 20 minutes, including five 3-pointers, actually outscored the home team in the second half, 31-29.
 
But championship-tested UAlbany was too sound on both ends of the court to let NJIT get any closer than 50-34 after Lynn drained a 3-pointer with 9:44 showing on the clock.
 
The Highlanders, who are is in a busy part of their schedule, having played last Friday, then Monday and Wednesday, are back home to host UMass Lowell on Saturday at 2 pm in the Fleisher Athletic Center.
 
NJIT and UMass Lowell split their two games last season, with each team winning the game played on its home court.