NJIT Game Notes (PDF)


PHILADELPHIA, PA --The Highlanders (5-7) will look to snap a three-game skid when they close out their season-long five game road trip against the Temple Owls (7-4) on Saturday afternoon. Tip off from the Liacouras Center is set for 2 p.m.
 
Last time out, NJIT dropped a 94-80 decision at Iona on Wednesday night while Temple fell to defending national champion Villanova by a score of 78-57 earlier in the week.
 
The game will be shown on live on ESPN3 (all remaining NJIT home basketball games can be seen on ESPN3).
 
A simple way to find ESPN3 is on NJIT's official athletics website, www.njithighlanders.com. Near the middle of the home page NJIT TV section, click Upcoming Events for a list of scheduled NJIT contests. After finding the event, click the camera icon to the right of the event listing. That brings you to an ESPN3 portal where you can access the desired program.
 
Matt Provence, the voice of the Highlanders, will be on the audio call with the pregame show beginning at 1:45 p.m. The broadcast can be accessed for free at www.njithighlanders.com or by clicking here.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES
 
Saturday marks the first ever meeting between the Highlanders and the Owls.
 
NJIT is 1-0 all-time against American Athletic Conference (AAC) members after picking up a 60-57 win over South Florida last season.
 
All-time against current members of the league, the Highlanders are 1-3.
 
GIVE A HOOT
 
The Owls have won six of their last eight heading into play on Saturday and are 3-2 at the Liacouras Center this season.
 
That stretch includes wins over ranked foes in West Virginia and Florida State in the Preseason NIT.
 
In the 78-57 loss at Villanova on Tuesday, Temple shot just 36.7% from the floor as the Wildcats led wire-to-wire in the contest.
 
Sophomore guard Shizz Alston Jr. paced the visitors with 12 points while senior guard/forward Daniel Dingle chipped in with 11 of his own.
 
Junior forward Obi Enechionyia leads the team and ranks fourth in the AAC in scoring at 17.6 ppg this season. The Springfield, Va., native also leads the team in rebounding with 7.4 boards per game.
 
He is joined in double figures by Alston Jr. (12.5 ppg), Dingle (11.4 ppg) and freshman guard Quinton Rose (10.7 ppg).
 
Head coach Fran Dunphy is in his 11^th season at the helm of the Owls and has led the program to seven NCAA Tournaments and five conference titles during his tenure. He has earned AAC Coach of the Year honors in each of the last two seasons.
 
The Owls have defeated seven Top 10 teams during Dunphy's tenure with the most recent upset being a 77-52 victory over No. 10 Kansas on Dec. 22, 2014.
 
Dunphy is one of just 25 active Division I coaches with 500 or more victories in his career and is one of five men to win 200 or more games at two different D-I programs.
 
Prior to coming to Temple, the Philadelphia native spent 17 seasons as the head coach at Penn where he led the Quakers to 10 Ivy League titles and nine NCAA Tournament berths.
 
In fact, during his tenure with the Quakers, he led the school to 48 straight Ivy League victories from 1992-96.
 
Dunphy has spent most of his career at Big 5 schools (La Salle, Penn, Saint Joe's, Temple & Villanova) as he played at La Salle (1967-70) and served as an assistant at his alma mater before later becoming the head coach at both Penn and Temple. He is the only person to serve as the head coach at two different Big 5 schools.
 
Alston Jr.'s father, Levan, also played basketball at Temple in the mid-90s.
 
Temple has played in 32 NCAA Tournaments all-time and has advanced to two Final Fours (1956, 1958).
 
NJIT OUTLOOK
 
An 18-2 first half run from Iona helped propel the Gaels to the 94-80 win over NJIT on Wednesday night in New Rochelle.
 
Following the 18-2 run, the Highlanders were unable to get any closer than eight points the rest of the way.
 
Senior guard Damon Lynn hit 7-of-17 (41.1%) from beyond the arc en route to a game-high 28 points for the Highlanders. Lynn was joined in double figures by senior forward Tim Coleman (15 points, 12 rebounds) and junior guard Chris Jenkins (13 points).
 
The double-double from Coleman was the 13^th of his career which set a new school record and the senior co-captain also became the school's all-time leading rebounder in the first half.
 
Coleman is the only active player in the Atlantic Sun with at least 1,200 career points (1,207) and 600 career rebounds (631).
 
The 13 points from Jenkins were a season-high and the most since he scored 16 at North Florida on Feb. 18, 2016.
 
Lynn is averaging 22.5 ppg this season, which ranks second in the A-SUN and 18^th nationally. 


Write-up courtesy of Joe Fitzhenry