NJIT Highlanders (4-9) vs. UMass-Lowell River Hawks (10-4)
January 11, 2024 6:30 pm EDT
The Line: UMass-Lowell River Hawks -14 ; Over/Under:
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The NJIT Highlanders and the UMass Lowell River Hawks meet Thursday in college basketball action from Costello Athletic Center. NJIT is currently 4-9 overall and coming off a loss to Albany. As for UMass Lowell, they’re riding a three-game win streak at 10-4 this year after a win over New Hampshire. Let’s get into our NJIT vs. UMass Lowell prediction. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
NJIT Highlanders
The Highlanders were only able to win one of their first seven games this year, falling to Miami, Saint Peter’s, American, Wagner, George Mason and Fairleigh Dickinson. NJIT is .500 over six games since then, with wins over Fordham, Medgar Evers and Morgan State in that stretch.
Back on Saturday versus Albany, NJIT held a one-point lead by halftime. The Highlanders were outscored 45-38 from there however, and ended up falling 79-73 in a tough one. Leading the team off the bench was Tariq Francis with 22 points, six assists, three rebounds and a steal.
UMass Lowell River Hawks
Over on the UMass Lowell side, they went 7-4 across their first 11 outings of the season. The River Hawks beat Rivier, Dartmouth, Georgia Tech, Saint Peter’s, Stonehill, Fisher and Long Island U along the way. Since then it’s been wins over Boston U, Emerson and New Hampshire in the last three.
In their matchup with New Hampshire on Saturday, the River Hawks posted a 51-45 run after a one-point lead in the first half in order to power out an 82-75 win. Brayden O’Connor was the team’s top scorer with his 23 points and two rebounds. Max Brooks put up 17 points and eight boards as well.
ANDREW’S FREE NJIT VS UMASS LOWELL PREDICTION
I’ll stay with UMass Lowell. The River Hawks were great on the boards in their last game versus New Hampshire, winning the rebounding battle 47-30. The overall shooting (42.9 percent) was okay, but UMass Lowell needs some improvement from 3-point range (25 percent) and in turnovers (14). Still, they’ve scored 71 or more points in each of the past three outings.
As for NJIT, they’re on a decent scoring run themselves with 69 or more points in four straight games. The Highlanders have gone just 2-2 in that time though, and they’re giving up some big points totals. UMass Lowell should have plenty of room to score on Thursday.
