Game 9	at UMass Lowell (4-5; 12-18, 6-10 AE in 2017-18)
Date | Time	Saturday, Dec. 1, 2018 | 2 p.m.
Location | Arena	Lowell, MA | Tsongas Center
Tickets	Tsongas Center Tickets | (866) 722-8780
Live Video	ESPN3 | Chris Villani (PBP), Jim Borodawka (Analyst)
Live Stats	In-game statistics (free)
All-time series	NJIT, 5-3 (4-3 in Division-I)
Game Notes	NJIT Notes | UMass Lowell Notes

 

(LOWELL, MA) – The Highlanders (7-1) look to continue their role as Road Warriors when they culminate a four-game road swing at UMass Lowell University (4-5) on Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Tsongas Center.
 
How good has NJIT been away from Newark?

* At 4-0, the Highlanders have started 4-0 on the road for the first time in 30 years -- since a 7-0 road mark to open a Division-III season in 1988-89. 

* NJIT's four-game road winning streak is its longest since a six-gamer in 2001-02. 

* The Highlanders are one of two teams in the nation with four road victories (Stony Brook). 

That said, NJIT is off to a terrific start overall -- opening 7-1 for the first time since 1994-95 (D-III). Brian Kennedy's team currently ranks #168 in latest NCAA NET Rankings and #203 in KenPom Rankings and is one of just 15 teams in Division-I to have already reached seven wins. Additionally, the Highlanders received three votes in latest Collegeinsider.com Mid-Major Top-25 poll (NJIT's first appearance since 2015-16).
 
The Highlanders most recent victory came at Drexel University (3-3) by a 70-67 score on Wednesday in Philadelphia.
 
After falling behind 7-0, the Highlanders soared with a 24-8 run that put them ahead for good. Yet, despite leading by 12 points at points at 58-46 lead with 13:37 remaining in the game, NJIT had to hang on for a victory.
 
Safe to say, the biggest storyline of the game for NJIT was again its defense -- which made two important stops on the Dragons' final pair of chances in a one-possession affair. The Highlanders limited Drexel to 26.5-percent shooting (9-for-34) in the second half. It also held a team that came in leading the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) at 82.0 points per game to 15 points below its average.
 
The Highlanders rank second in the ASUN and 60th in the nation in scoring defense (64.8 ppg) and second in the conference and 87th in D-I in field-goal percentage defense (.401).
 
Senior Abdul Lewis posted team-highs in points (17) and rebounds (10) in recording NJIT's first double-double of the season and the 14th of his Highlanders career. The Newark native ranks 14th in career rebounds (763) among active NCAA D-I players.
 
Sophomore Zach Cooks finished with 16 points, four rebounds and four assists. Senior Mohamed Bendary registered 12 points and junior Shyquan Gibbs tallied 11 points while tying his career-high with a game-high seven assists.
 
Cooks, the reigning ASUN Co-Player of the Week, has scored at least 22 points in three of the last four games – averaging 21.3 points per game in the span. The product of Lawrenceville, Ga., ranks third in the ASUN in scoring at 17.3 ppg. He also leads the conference and ranks sixth in the nation at 2.9 steals per game. Despite his five-foot-nine frame, Cooks leads NJIT with 38 rebounds.
 
NJIT's two other double-digit scorers are senior Diandre Wilson (13.4 ppg) and junior Shyquan Gibbs (11.1 ppg).
 
The Highlanders earlier road wins came at Binghamton University and against two Northeast Conference champions a season ago in Wagner University (regular season) and LIU Brooklyn (tournament).
 
 
All-Time Series
 
NJIT leads the all-time series with UMass Lowell, 5-3, after a 78-65 home victory in Newark last season on Dec. 2, 2017 (the edge is 4-3 at the Division-I level, as NJIT defeated UML, 57-54, in a D-II contest in Newark on Nov. 15, 1998).
 
In fact, the Highlanders have won the last three meetings -- including a 75-74 victory last time there were in Lowell on Dec. 3, 2016, at the Tsongas Center.
 
The Highlanders have gone 1-0 at the Tsongas Center as compared to 0-2 at the Costello Athletic Center.
 
All-time, NJIT is 15-20 against America East opponents after a 74-57 win at Binghamton on Nov. 9. Last season, the Highlanders went 1-0 vs. AE foes with the victory over UMass Lowell.
 
NJIT has won its last five last contests with AE foes starting with an 86-83 home victory over UMBC on Jan. 2, 2016. The span also includes two wins over UML and one at Stony Brook.

  
Hawk Eyes
 
UMass Lowell started 4-3 before back-to-back road losses against difficult opponents in UConn (NCAA NET #32) and Duquesne (NCAA NET #52).
 
Regardless, it's been a solid start for a team predicted to finish last among the nine teams in the America East preseason poll. This marks the team's second year of full D-I eligibility,  
 
Last year, the River Hawks (12-18, 6-10) entered the AE tournament as the seventh-seed before falling in the first round to soon-to-be NCAA underdog darling UMBC.
 
The River Hawks offense led the league in scoring at 76.2 ppg last season – and is averaging 81.2 ppg in 2018-19 despite losing their top two scorers in Jahad Thomas and Matt Harris.
 
Two underclassmen have really stepped up this season. Sophomore Obadiah Noel leads the team at 16.1 ppg – which ranks seventh in the AE.
 
Freshman Alex Rivera is 11^th in the conference at 14.1 ppg and is shooting 44.7-percent (21-for-47) from beyond the arc, good for second in league standings. He became just the second newcomer in the program's D-I era to reach 100 points in just seven games.
 
UMass Lowell has two other double-digit scorers in senior co-captain Josh Gantz (13.1 ppg) and junior Christian Lutete, who's averaging 13.0 ppg and a conference-leading 8.6 rebounds per game with four double-doubles in the young campaign.
 
Pat Duqette (60-96) is in his sixth season as head coach and has notched double-digit win totals in each of his first five campaigns. Before coming to Lowell, he spent 16 years as an assistant with stints at Boston College (1997-10) and Northeastern (2010-13).
 
During his time at BC, the Dalton, Mass., native was a part of seven NCAA Tournament teams and three Big East Championship teams including a Sweet 16 berth in 2006.
 
Duquette is the younger brother of Jim Duquette, the former general manager of the New York Mets and Baltimore Orioles. His cousin, Dan Duquette, is the current Vice President of Baseball operations for the Orioles, and former general manager of the Boston Red Sox and Montreal Expos.
 
Assistant coaches Louis Hinnant and Biko Paris both played at Boston College during Duqette's tenure as an assistant under head coach Al Skinner.