2020–21 NJIT Highlanders men's basketball team

The 2020–21 NJIT Highlanders men's basketball team represents the New Jersey Institute of Technology in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Highlanders, led by fifth-year head coach Brian Kennedy, play their home games at the Wellness and Events Center in Newark, New Jersey as first year members of the America East Conference.

2020–21 NJIT Highlanders men's basketball
ConferenceAmerica East Conference
2020–21 record6–8 (5–7 America East)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Jeff Rafferty
  • Kim Waiters
  • Joe Gutowski
  • Danny Manuel
Home arenaWellness and Events Center
2020–21 America East Conference men's basketball standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L PCT  W L PCT
UMBC9–3 .750  13–4  .765
Vermont7–3 .700  7–3  .700
Hartford7–5 .583  10–7  .588
UMass Lowell6–5 .545  7–8  .467
New Hampshire7–6 .538  8–8  .500
Stony Brook6–6 .500  8–10  .444
Albany4–4 .500  4–6  .400
NJIT5–7 .417  6–8  .429
Maine2–6 .250  2–7  .222
Binghamton2–10 .167  2–13  .133
† 2021 AmEast Tournament winner
As of February 8, 2021; Rankings from AP Poll

Previous season

The Highlanders finished the 2019–20 season 9–21, 6–10 in ASUN play to finish in eighth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the ASUN Tournament to Liberty.

This was the final season the Highlanders were a member of the ASUN. On June 14, 2020, it was announced that on they would become a full member of the America East Conference beginning July 1, 2020.[1]

Roster
2020–21 NJIT Highlanders men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G 0 Adetokunbo Bakare 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)185 lb (84 kg) FrSt. Benedict's Prep Newark, NJ
G 1 Dylan O'Hearn 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)185 lb (84 kg) JrCarolina Basketball Academy
Western Oklahoma State CC		 Westland, MI
F 2 San Antonio Brinson 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)210 lb (95 kg) SrSouth Kent School Thomson, GA
F 3 Miles Coleman 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)210 lb (95 kg) JrWilliam T. Dwyer HS
Indian River State College		 West Palm Beach, FL
G 4 Zach Cooks 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)165 lb (75 kg) SrBerkmar HS Lawrenceville, GA
G 5 Diego Willis 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)180 lb (82 kg) JrCanarias Basketball Academy Hermosillo, Mexico
F 13 Jason Murphy 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)240 lb (109 kg) RS FrSt. Frances Academy Owings Mills, MD
F 21 Souleymane Diakite 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)230 lb (104 kg) JrSaint Benedict's Prep Bamako, Mali
G 23 Antwuan Butler 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)205 lb (93 kg) JrCardinal O'Hara HS
Austin Peay		 Philadelphia, PA
G 24 Mekhi Gray 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)180 lb (82 kg) FrPutnam Science Academy Montrose, NY
F 32 Xavier Mayo 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)230 lb (104 kg) SoThe Hill School Beacon, NY
F 33 Kjell de Graaf 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)230 lb (104 kg) JrCanarias Basketball Academy Rotterdam, Netherlands
F 35 Da'mir Faison 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)200 lb (91 kg) RS FrHazleton Area HS Philadelphia, PA
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: December 2, 2020

Schedule and results

On November 25, NJIT paused activities following positive Covid-19 tests.[2] cancelling nonconference games that the school had not yet announced.

Date
time, TV		 Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
December 19, 2020*
4:30 pm, ESPN+		 at Temple L 60–72  0–1
 Liacouras Center 
Philaelphia, PA
December 23, 2021*
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Rider W 81–66  1–1
 Alumni Gymnasium 
Lawrenceville, NJ
December 27, 2020
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Vermont L 78–92  1–2
(0–1)		 Patrick Gym 
Burlington, VT
December 28, 2020
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Vermont W 81–80 2OT 2–2
(1–1)		 Patrick Gym 
Burlington, VT
January 2, 2021
3:00 pm, ESPN3		 at UMass Lowell W 73–67  3–2
(2–1)		 Costello Athletic Center 
Lowell, MA
January 3, 2021
1:00 pm, ESPN3		 at UMass Lowell L 60–74  3–3
(2–2)		 Costello Athletic Center 
Lowell, MA
January 9, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 Maine W 63–54  4–3
(3–2)		 Wellness and Events Center 
Newark, NJ
January 10, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN3		 Maine L 41–45  4–4
(3–3)		 Wellness and Events Center 
Newark, NJ
January 16, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Albany L 75–83  4–5
(3–4)		 SEFCU Arena 
Albany, NY
January 17, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Albany L 71–83  4–6
(3–5)		 SEFCU Arena 
Albany, NY
January 23, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 Stony Brook W 74–65  5–6
(4–5)		 Wellness and Events Center 
Newark, NJ
January 24, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 Stony Brook L 44–56  5–7
(4–6)		 Wellness and Events Center 
Newark, NJ
January 31, 2021
12:00 pm, ESPN3		 UMBC W 69–65  6–7
(5–6)		 Wellness and Events Center 
Newark, NJ
February 1, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 UMBC L 71–75  6–8
(5–7)		 Wellness and Events Center 
Newark, NJ
February 6, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Binghamton Binghamton University Events Center 
Vestal, NY
February 7, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Binghamton Binghamton University Events Center 
Vestal, NY
February 13, 2021
 ESPN+		 at Hartford Chase Arena at Reich Family Pavilion 
West Hartford, CT
February 14, 2021
 ESPN+		 at Hartford Chase Arena at Reich Family Pavilion 
West Hartford, CT
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern.

Source[3]

References
  1. https://americaeast.com/news/2020/6/14/NJIT-membership.aspx
  2. https://www.njithighlanders.com/news/2020/11/25/njit-mens-basketball-pauses-team-activitiesaspx
  3. "2020-21 Men's Basketball Schedule". New Jersey Institute of Technology Athletics. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
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