Newark, NJ - The NJIT men's basketball team takes on North Florida on Saturday in the second and final game of its ASUN Conference road swing in Jacksonville. Tip-off is slated for 5pm at UNF Arena.
Watch Game Live on ESPN+:
The game will be streamed live on ESPN+. Richard Miller will handle the play-by-play with and color analysis from
Lee Moon Jr.
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.
Get Your Buddy a Shot!:
In three wins this season, NJIT is averaging 14.0 apg as opposed to just 9.0 apg in its losses. The Highlanders dished out a season-high 17 assists vs. Wagner and 16 assists vs. Kean.
Zach Cooks,
Shyquan Gibbs and
Souleymane Diakite are each averaging more than 2.0 apg, with Cooks leading the way at 2.4 apg. Gibbs' five assists vs. Wagner lead the team so far this season.
Diakite-Diakite:
Sophomore
Souleymane Diakite has recorded three double-doubles in his last five games and his 12-point, 11-rebound, six block performance at UConn earned him ASUN Player of the Week honors. Diakite's six blocks at UConn were the most in a single game since
Tim Coleman swatted six shots in 2014.
All-Time Series
Saturday's meeting is the 10th all-time between the Highlanders and Ospreys, with the previous nine coming in ASUN action over the last four years. UNF leads the all-time series 6-3. The squads split last season's series, with each team winning on its opponent's home floor.
Last Three Meetings:
2/16/19: UNF 64, NJIT 63 -- Newark, NJ
1/21/19: NJIT 76, UNF 72 -- Jacksonville, FL
2/26/18: UNF 80, NJIT 76 -- Newark, NJ
Last Time Out vs. UNF
The NJIT Highlanders (18-9, 6-6 ASUN) fell to the North Florida Ospreys (12-16, 6-7 ASUN) in a heart breaker at the Wellness and Events Center, 64-63.
The Highlanders closed the game on an 11-2 run and narrowly missed hitting a buzzer beater to win the game as their comeback efforts fell just short.
Despite the loss, due to results around the conference, NJIT officially clinched their place in the ASUN Championship.
Senior
Abdul Lewis finished with a double-double featuring 20 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomore
Zach Cooks, who played all 40 minutes of the game, ended with 13 points and eight rebounds.
Scouting the Ospreys
UNF, which was picked second in the ASUN Preseason Poll, has a perfect record in three conference games this season.
The Ospreys have the top offense in the ASUN, averaging 78.7 ppg and rank 1st among all NCAA squads in three-point attempts this season.
Carter Hendrickson leads four Ospreys averaging double figures at 15.6 ppg.
Up Next
NJIT returns home for a pair of ASUN contests next weekend, first hosting Lipscomb on Thursday at 12pm, before welcoming Kennesaw State to the WEC on Saturday at 4pm.
