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NJIT looking to stun No. 22 Seton Hall (Nov 18, 2017)
NEWARK, N.J. -- NJIT will make a short bus ride from its campus in downtown Newark to the Prudential Center, where it will face No. 22 Seton Hall on Saturday.
The Highlanders (1-1) are 0-14 at Prudential and dropped all five meetings with the Pirates (3-0). Seton Hall's average margin of victory in the series is 23.6 points.
This is NJIT's fifth meeting with a Top-25 opponent and it's the first since a 79-68 loss to No. 18 Purdue on Nov. 26, 2016. The Highlanders' lone win against a Top-25 opponent was in a 72-70 victory at No. 17 Michigan on Dec. 6, 2014.
Seton Hall is one of two Top 25 teams that NJIT will play this season. Coach Brian Kennedy's squad will also battle No. 24 West Virginia on Nov. 30.
The last meeting between the two New Jersey teams occurred on Dec. 10, 2013, with the Pirates notching a 71-55 win. However, the Highlanders trailed just 31-28 at the half and were still within five points with under six minutes left in the game before a 10-0 run by Seton Hall iced the victory.
The two teams played for five straight seasons between 2009-10 and 2013-14, but have not met since.
The Highlanders are 1-21 against the Big East, but won their last matchup against the conference with an 83-74 victory at St. John's on Dec. 20, 2015.
NJIT is up against a veteran Seton Hall team that starts four seniors and returns 90 percent of its scoring. The Highlanders feature just one senior, swingman Chris Jenkins. Seven of 13 Highlanders are underclassmen.
"We definitely have one of the youngest teams in Division-I basketball this year," said Kennedy. "But we will be talented and will play a deep roster led by Abdul Lewis and Anthony Tarke, who are both entering their second year with the program.
"I'm excited about the make-up of our roster and the opening of the WEC (Wellness & Events Center) provides tremendous opportunities for our students and athletes," said Kennedy. "We have significant challenges ahead of us this season, but we certainly have the building blocks in place for the future as we continue to grow the program."
Seton Hall center Angel Delgado recorded his 53rd career double-double and third in as many games this season in the Pirates' 84-68 win over Indiana on Wednesday. Seton Hall clung to a one-point halftime lead before Delgado took over in the second half, scoring 15 of his 19 points and grabbing 7 of his 11 rebounds.
"We talked at halftime about making sure the big guy (Delgado) touched it," Willard said. "They did a good job in the second half getting him the ball.
"They (Indiana) did a good job of pushing him away from the ball in the first half. The great thing about Angel is he's got such a great motor he can wear you down. The biggest difference in his game is he's become an elite passer out of the post. He knows most nights he's going to get a lot of touches, so he's become unselfish and he understands he has some really good players around him."
