Game 15	at Duquesne University (9-3; 16-16, 7-11 in A10 in 2017-18)
Date | Time	Monday, Dec. 31, 2018 | 2 p.m.
Location | Arena	Pittsburgh, PA | A.J.Palumbo Center
Tickets	UD Tickets | 412-232-DUKE (3853)
Live Video	ESPN+  |  Tim Benz (PBP) & Ellis Cannon (color)
Live Stats	In-game statistics (free)
All-time Series	Tied, 1-1
Game Notes	NJIT Notes | Duquesne Notes

 

(PITTSBURGH, PA) – The Highlanders finish up their non-conference schedule and the calendar year with a New Year's Eve bout at Duquesne University on Monday. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Palumbo Center in Pittsburgh.
 
NJIT (11-3) has yet to lose consecutive games this season. Although snapping a four-game winning streak on Saturday at University of Houston, the Highlanders' 80-59 defeat came at the hands of the No. 22 Cougars – who improved to 13-0 and extended the nation's longest active home winning streak to 26 games.
 
That said, by the time the final buzzer sounds at Duquesne, NJIT will have played two games in 48 hours after having traveled 2,500 miles.
 
The Highlanders got off to a fast start in the brand-new Fertitta Center on Saturday, taking an 18-8 lead into the second media timeout. But from that point on, the team with the sixth-best scoring defense in the nation held NJIT to just 13-for-48 (27.1%) from the floor. NJIT finished 20-for-61 (32.8%) for the game.
 
Regardless, the Highlanders remain off to the best start in their Division-I history (13 seasons) and since the program opened 13-1 in 1994-95 – a season in which it went 28-2 and advanced to the NCAA Division-III Elite Eight.
 
NJIT is also one of just two teams in the nation with at least six road wins this season (Stony Brook University of the America East has seven).
 
Despite the loss in the Lone Star State, sophomore Zach Cooks netted a game-high 20 points and upped his ASUN scoring lead to 19.3 points per game. The Lawrenceville, Ga., native has tallied at least 20 points in seven of the last 10 affairs -- averaging 21.7 ppg in the span.
 
Senior Abdul Lewis (7 points, 7 rebounds) is one double-double away from setting a program record with 17 in his NJIT career. He also needs just 15 points to reach 1,000 in his collegiate career. After a slow start, the Newark product is averaging 14.3 ppg and 9.8 rpg over his last four contests. He currently leads the Highlanders in rebounding at 8.3 rpg and ranks tied for 13th among all active D-I players with 820 career boards.
 
Senior Diandre Wilson is NJIT's other double-digit scorer, as the Fort Lauderdale native is averaging 11.0 ppg. Although falling just short at 9.9 ppg, junior co-captain Shyquan Gibbs leads the team with 2.7 assists per game.
 
Since Jan. 8, 2011, NJIT has posted an impressive 134-117 (.534) overall record in its last 251 games after the Highlanders started their D-I era at 18-114 (.136).
 
The Highlanders have a current NCAA Net Ranking of 161 and have appeared in "Others Receiving Votes" in the Associated Press Top-25 in each of the last three weeks (Dec. 10-24) -- the first times in program history that NJIT has been recognized in the poll.
 
NJIT will next start ASUN conference play with a home tilt against Kennesaw State University (3-11) on Jan. 5 at the Wellness and Events Center in Newark.

 
All-Time Series:
 
The all-time series between NJIT and the Duquesne Dukes is tied, 1-1.
 
NJIT won the most recent matchup, 84-81, at the Palumbo Center on Nov. 29, 2014. Duquesne won the first meeting, 71-64, on Jan. 29, 2014, at Fleisher Athletic Center.
 
All-time, NJIT is 2-5 versus Atlantic 10 foes -- but 1-0 this season after a 53-50 win at Fordham University on Dec. 11. Prior, NJIT hadn't played against the A10 since the two games against Duquesne.
 
This season, the two teams share one common opponent. NJIT lost at UMass Lowell, 94-71, on Dec. 1 while Duquesne earned an 83-71 home win against the River Hawks on Nov. 25.
 
 
Put Up Your Dukes:
 
Last season, Duquesne finished 16-16 overall; but its 7-11 conference record slotted the Dukes into the 10-seed for the A10 Tournament. There, they lost in the first round to seven-seed University of Richmond, 81-68, in Washington, DC.
 
Despite a prediction of 11^th in the A10 preseason poll, the Dukes rebuilt with 11 newcomers and have gotten off to a fast start at 9-3 for an NCAA Net Ranking of 142. Duquesne has won five of its last six contests – and its only three losses have come to power-conference teams in University of Notre Dame (67-56 on Nov. 20), University of Pittsburgh (74-53 on Nov. 30) and Penn State University (73-67 on Dec. 19).
 
One of the Dukes' most impressive wins came in a 93-82 home victory over Marshall University on Dec. 5. Most recently, they defeated Eastern Kentucky University, 85-84, in overtime at home on Dec. 22.
 
Sophomore Eric Williams Jr., the reigning A10 Co-Player of the Week and a preseason All-Conference selection, is the team's leading scorer at 14.3 ppg. He also averages a team-best 7.3 rpg – good for sixth in the conference. Additionally, he's the top three-point threat on the squad and third in the A10, connecting at a 45.2-percent rate (28-for-62).
 
Freshman point guard Sincere Carry, the reigning A10 Rookie of the Week, is third on the team in scoring at 10.8 ppg while leading the team and ranking fourth in the league with 5.9 apg.
 
Duquesne's only other double-digit scorer is sophomore Michael Hughes (13.2 ppg) – a transfer from Akron -- who ranks third in the A10 in field-goal percentage at .697 (46-for-66).
 
Veteran head coach Keith Dambrot is in his second season with Duquesne (25-19) and 17^th overall (350-192). The 60-year-old has held prior stints at Central Michigan University (1991-93) and University of Akron (2004-17) and is a three-time Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year. Last season, his 16 wins marked the highest total produced by a first-year Duquesne coach since Dudey Moore went 17-5 in 1948-49.
 
Dambrot's father, Sid, played for Duquesne from 1952-54.
 
The Dukes, who own a perfect 8-0 record at home, are looking to match the school record for wins entering conference play set in 2007-08 and repeated in 2015-16 (both 10-3).