NJIT GAME NOTES (PDF)


MORGANTOWN, WV – The NJIT Highlanders (4-2) will look for their fourth straight win on Thursday night when they battle the No. 19 West Virginia Mountaineers (6-1) at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown. Opening tip is set for 7 p.m. and the game can be seen live on AT&T SportsNet.
 
NJIT is coming off a 73-69 win over LIU-Brooklyn on Tuesday night in Newark, while West Virginia stormed back to topple Missouri 83-79 in the Championship game of the Advocare Invitational on Sunday in Orlando.
 
This will mark the Highlanders' first game outside of the city limits of Newark in the 2017-18 season.
 
With a win, NJIT will have won four straight for the first time since taking five in a row from Jan. 30-Feb.13, 2016.
 
This is NJIT's second meeting of the season with a Top-25 foe and their sixth all-time after dropping an 82-53 decision to then No. 22 Seton Hall on Nov. 18 at the Prudential Center in Newark.
 
In the contest at Seton Hall, the Highlanders trailed by just four in the early stages of the second half.
 
The Highlanders' lone win against a Top-25 opponent came in a 72-70 victory at No. 17 Michigan on Dec. 6, 2014.
 
AT&T SportsNet is channel 659 on DirectTV. Rob King will be on play-by-play with color commentary from Warren Baker, while Robby Incmikoski handles sideline duties.
 
All-Time Series
 
Thursday is the first ever meeting between the Highlanders and Mountaineers and will also be NJIT's first ever game against a Big 12 foe.
 
The Highlanders have previously played opponents from each of the other Power Five conferences (ACC, Big 10, Pac 12 & SEC).
 
West Virginia on My Mind
 
West Virginia erased a 16-point second half deficit en route to the 83-79 win over Missouri on Sunday at the HP Field House in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
 
Trailing 68-52 with under eight minutes to play, the Mountaineers forced nine Missouri turnovers in the final 7:19 to ignite the rally and senior guard Jevon Carter hit a three in the final two minutes to give West Virginia its first lead of the second half at 77-75.
 
Carter (29 points) and senior guard Daxter Miles Jr. (26 points) combined for 55 of the Mountaineers' 83 points in the come-from-behind win.
 
Carter was named Tournament MVP after averaging 21.6 ppg in three games and leading his team to victories over Marist, UCF and Missouri.
 
Known for their frenetic "Press Virginia" playing style on the defensive end, the Mountaineers lead the Big 12 with an average of 11.7 steals per contest.
 
On the offensive side of things, head coach Bob Huggins' squad ranks third in the Big 12 in scoring at 87.9 ppg.
 
Carter leads five Mountaineers averaging double figures in points at 18.1 ppg and is joined by Miles Jr. (15.9 ppg), sophomore guard James Bolden (11.6 ppg), sophomore forward Sagaba Konate (10.3 ppg) and sophomore forward Lamont West (10.1 ppg).
 
The Mountaineers were picked to finish second in the Big 12 Preseason Poll after going 28-9 (12-6 Big 12) a year ago and advancing to the Sweet 16 before falling to eventual National Runner-Up Gonzaga in a 61-58 thriller.
 
In 2016-17, West Virginia led the nation in four statistical categories and set a school record for points in a season (3,014).
 
Huggins is in his 11^th season at the helm of his alma mater and has directed the Mountaineers to nine postseason appearances including the school's second ever Final Four appearance in 2010 and four Sweet 16 appearances.
 
The Morgantown native has compiled a record of 235-120 (.660) in his 10 plus seasons at West Virginia.
 
Huggins' head coaching career includes stints at Walsh College (1980-83), Akron (1984-89), Cincinnati (1989-2005), Kansas State (2006-07) and West Virginia (2007-Present) during which he has collected a grand total of 825 victories.
 
On Dec. 17, 2016, Huggins became the 10^th coach in NCAA Division I history to win 800 games when West Virginia defeated UMKC.
 
West's mother, Tonya, played college basketball at Purdue and helped lead the Boilermakers to the 1994 Final Four.
 
NJIT Outlook
 
In the 73-69 win over LIU-Brooklyn on Tuesday, junior forward Abdul Lewis hit a free throw with 14 seconds left to preserve the victory and give the Highlanders their first ever victory over the Blackbirds.
 
LIU-Brooklyn had two chances to tie the game in the final minute, but came up short on a couple of triples.
 
Lewis led all scorers with 23 points and 18 rebounds; both totals marked the second-highest of his NJIT career.
 
The 18 rebounds is also the second-most in school history after Lewis' school-record 19-rebound performance on Jan. 19, 2017 at Stetson.
 
Junior guard Diandre Wilson added 16 points of his own on 6-of-9 shooting for the Highlanders.
 
Defense continues to be a calling card for the 2017-18 Highlanders as head coach Brian Kennedy's squad leads the ASUN in scoring defense (67.8 ppg), field goal percentage (40.8%) and turnovers forced (16.5 tpg).
 
On the season, the Highlanders have featured a balanced offensive attack with four players averaging more than seven points per game: Wilson (11.5 ppg), Lewis (11.0 ppg), sophomore forward Anthony Tarke (10.5 ppg) and freshman guard Zach Cooks (7.2 ppg).
 
Lewis leads the ASUN in rebounding at 11.3 boards per game, a total that ranks tied for 11^th in the nation.
 
Wilson sits fifth in the ASUN in field goal percentage (56.8%) and there are a trio of Highlanders in the top five in three-point percentage: sophomore guard Shyquan Gibbs (1^st, 77.8%, 7-9), Cooks (T-4^th, 50.0%, 8-16) and Wilson (T-4^th, 50.0%, 9-18).


Write-up courtesy of Joe Fitzhenry