2019-20 NJIT Men's Basketball Schedule
NEWARK, NJ - Fourth-year NJIT men's basketball head coach Brian Kennedy has announced the Highlanders' 2019-20 schedule, which is headlined by 13 home games and includes road contests against teams from the Big East, Big Ten and American Athletic Conferences.
The Highlanders will look to build on their 2018-19 campaign where the squad set new program records for wins (22), non-conference victories (13) and road wins (11). Other highlights from last season include an 83-78 victory at Florida Golf Coast in the ASUN Quarterfinals, the program's first-ever ASUN Tournament win, and a trip to the COLLEGEINSIDER.COM Postseason Tournament, where NJIT knocked off Quinnipiac 92-81 in the opening round.
"We are looking forward to the 2019-2020 season and continuing to build upon on last season's historical campaign to enhance our basketball tradition and Highlander brand," said Kennedy. "This year's schedule is very competitive and features 10 games against eight different programs that competed in National Postseason Tournaments (NCAA, NIT, CIT, CBI)"
NJIT is slated to open on November 6 at Colgate, last season's Patriot League Tournament Champions and one of four 2018-19 NCAA Tournament opponents on the schedule. Following the trip to Colgate, the Highlanders will continue a three-game, season-opening road trip at Providence (November 9) and Cornell (November 13).
The squad opens up its home schedule with a November 16 contest against Wagner, and will host Binghamton on November 20, also at the Wellness and Events Center in Newark. Last season, the Highlanders were 11-5 at the WEC.
NJIT then heads back on the road for four contests, starting with a November 23 tilt at Brown and closes its November schedule at Rutgers on November 26. The Highlanders will travel to Army on December 4 and close the four-game road trip at UCF, another 2018-19 NCAA Tournament team, on December 7 in Orlando.
The final four non-conference games will rotate home and away, starting on December 11 when NJIT hosts UMass-Lowell. The Highlanders will then travel to St. Francis Brooklyn (December 14) and welcome Division III Kean (December 22) to Newark, before closing out the calendar year at UConn on December 29.
"We'll be tested early and often against a very competitive non-conference schedule that includes a solid blend of high-level and mid-major opponents that should have us ready for conference play," added Kennedy.
The ASUN Conference schedule opens the New Year, with NJIT hosting reigning Conference Champion Liberty on January 4. NJIT's second home conference contest will also be a challenge as it welcomes Libscomb, the 2018-19 ASUN Regular Season Champion and NIT runner-up, to Newark.
NJIT will host six more ASUN opponents, including: Kennesaw St. (January 18), North Alabama (January 30), North Florida (February 6), Jacksonville (February 8), Stetson (February 20), and Florida Gulf Coast (February 22).
The ASUN Conference Tournament begins on March 3 with the semifinals and championship scheduled for March 5 and 8, respectively. All games are played on the campuses of the highest seeds.
"We have a very solid and reliable core of veteran players, led by the dynamic backcourt of Zach Cooks and Shyquan Gibbs, the emerging San Antonio Brinson, and the return of Reilly Walsh, to complement a group of nine very talented, yet unproven, underclassmen (three sophomores, six freshmen)," concluded Kennedy.
