Newark, NJ—Tyler Stone scored a career- and game-high 17 points to lead four players in double figures, but it was not enough as NJIT defeated Howard, 71-62 in a non-conference game at the Fleisher Athletic Center.
Howard head coach Kevin Nickelberry decided to rest all his starters in order to prepare for the upcoming MEAC Tournament, March 9-14 in Norfolk, VA.
"Our starters have played a lot of minutes this season, so I decided to give them a rest," explained Nickelberry. "Our plan is to go into the tournament with fresh legs and be able to use our depth. If we are going to be playing three games in three days in the tournament, this helps us. The Norfolk State game and this game showed that we have depth and that we have people who can come in and contribute."
The move could prove to be a blessing in disguise for Howard (16-15) as the reserves proved to be more than competitive against the Highlanders (18-11).
"NJIT is a very good basketball team," he noted. "We had some problems getting our feet underneath us in the first half, but we outscored them in the second half."
A little used reserve this season, Stone connected on 5 of 9 from the field, including a perfect 2 for 2 on three points while also grabbing 9 rebounds, blocking 3 shots and getting 3 steals.
Brandon Ford had a career-high of 14 points on 5 of 9 shooting. Keon Hill also had a career best of 12 points and a season-high six assists and Solomon Mangham chipped in with 11 points and 7 rebounds.
"I thought Keon did a great job of getting the ball to the right people in the right spots," he said. "Tyler had a tremendous second half and Brandon Ford was steady. I was very proud of the way that they competed."
NJIT, which is Independent, and has been invited to play in the College Insider post-season tournament, threatened to put the Bison away on several occasions, leading by as much as 18 twice. But each time, Howard scrapped and clawed its way back into the game.
The Highlanders, one of the top three-point shooting teams, which has posted a victory over Michigan this season, did what it did best, connecting 10 of 24 (42 percent) from beyond the arc. Each time, Howard would come close, Damon Lynn, Winfield Willis and Osa Izevbuwa took turns hitting timely three points that would repel Howard's efforts.
Lynn led NJIT with 16, Winfield Willis with 15 and Tim Coleman and Daquan Holiday with 11 each.
