NEWARK, NJ—NJIT will visit a winless Hartford team and look to extend its win streak on Saturday, December 7 at Reich Family Pavilion. Tip-off is slated for 2pm on ESPN+.
An NJIT win...
—NJIT will have won three straight (last time; 2016-17; Dec. 16 to Dec. 30)
—Register the first road victory in 2019
—Pick up the first all-time win over Hartford
Watch Game Live on ESPN+
The game will be streamed live on ESPN+. Dan Lovallo will handle the play-by-play and color analysis from Ted Woodward.
A simple way to find ESPN+ is on NJIT's official athletics website, www.njithighlanders.com. Near the middle of the home page under the headlines section, an upcoming events calendar lists scheduled NJIT contests. After finding the event, click the camera icon to the left of the event listing. That brings you to an ESPN+ portal where you can access the desired program.
All-Time Series
NJIT and Hartford will meet for the second time with the Hawks leading the all-time series, 1-0. The two teams met last season with the Hawks defeating the Highlanders, 84-53 in Newark.
Last Time Out
NJIT picked up its second win of the season behind four double-figure scorers led by a career-best 21 points, 10 rebounds from freshman
Kenna Squier in the Highlanders 76-73 home victory over visiting Saint Peter's Wednesday in women's basketball non-conference action at NJIT's Wellness and Events Center.
Squier led a balanced attack for NJIT, setting a new personal-best mark of 21 points, shooting 8-for-12 from the field, 5-for-8 from the free throw line and grabbing 10 rebounds, a new career-high. The 5-foot-9 guard registered her first double-double of her career in the win over the Peacocks.
Senior forward
Milena Bajic recorded her second straight double-double, netting 17 points and 13 rebounds. The 17 points matches Bajic personal-best (17 vs. Vermont; 12.2.18) and 13 rebounds is a new personal best. Bajic finished 8-for-10 from the free throw line and 4-of-10 from the field.
Classmate
Danielle Tunstall scored 13 points on 6-of-14 from the field, grabbing five rebounds and posting two blocks while junior guard
Ellyn Stoll chipped in 11 points on 5-of-7 from the field.
Scouting the Highlanders
NJIT enters Saturday's contest with a 2-6 overall record and winners of two in a row. NJIT opened the season 0-6 and bounced into the win column with an 88-69 win over St. Francis Brooklyn before the Thanksgiving Holiday break and on Wednesday, 76-73, with a win over Saint Peter's.
The Highlanders, which are averaging 59.4ppg are led by three double-figure scorers —
Danielle Tunstall and
Kenna Squier (11.4ppg) and
Milena Bajic (10.0ppg). Tunstall tops the team in the rebounding category (9.5) and total blocks (17), which ranks second in the ASUN Conference. Tunstall's 17 total blocks is tied for 25th in the nation.
Bajic, who returned back to the court against Wagner on November 19, has played in three games thus far, registering back-to-back double-doubles in a pair of Highlander wins (11pts, 11rebs vs. SFB; 17pts, 13rebs vs. Saint Peter's).
Scouting the Hawks
Hartford (0-8) concludes a five-game road stretch and are still in search of its first win of the season under first-year head coach Morgan Valley.
Last season, the Hawks graduated its top-five scorers from a 23-win team, which advanced to the first round of the WNIT for the first time since 2012-13. Hartford returns leading scorer Jabria Ingram and adds five newcomers to the roster.
The Hawks are coming off a 74-46 road loss at Penn behind freshman Carmen Villalobos' 13 points and 10 rebounds for her first career double-double.
Hartford is led by Jada Lucas, the lone double-figure scorer for the Hawks, averaging 13.1ppg. Sierra Smith tops the Hawks on the boards at 6.9rpg while Lawrencia Moten has combined for 16 total blocks, which ranks first in the America East and 34th in the nation.
First-year head coach Morgan Valley brings more than 14 years of experience as a Division I coach to the Hawks, with her recent stop being a two-year stint at Arizona, where the Wildcats advanced to the WNIT Championship in 2019. Valley won 138 games and three national championships as a player at UConn from 2000-04.
American East Preseason Coaches Poll
Hartford was selected to finish fifth in the Preseason Coaches Poll out of nine teams. The Hawks tallied 32 votes in the poll of the league's head coaches.
Next Up
NJIT will return home and welcome nearby Fairleigh Dickinson on Tuesday, December 10 at 7pm inside NJIT's Wellness and Events Center. The game will be streamed on ESPN+. Last season, the Knights defeated the Highlanders in Teaneck, 64-43.
