The UT Arlington Mavericks take on the NJIT Highlanders in the third round of the CIT tournament at Fleisher Center. The game starts at 7:30 pm ET on Thursday, Mar. 24.
The Highlanders beat Boston University 83-72 in the 2. Damon Lynn was the game’s high scorer with 31 points on 9-for-17 shooting. The Mavericks, meanwhile, are coming off a 75-59 win over Savannah State in the 1. Drew Charles stood out for UT Arlington, recording 19 points, four steals, and two assists.
Points could be at a premium in this matchup between two of the nation’s best defenses. NJIT ranks 31st in the nation in defensive efficiency (105.1), while UT Arlington is fourth (95.3). Also, the Mavericks commit the 32nd-fewest errors in the nation (TO% of 18.7%), while the ball-hawking defense of the Highlanders causes the ninth-most (opponents’ TO% of 19.3%).
Notes
The NJIT Highlanders have a defensive rating of 105.1 (ranked 31st), while the UT Arlington Mavericks have an offensive rating of 108.7 (ranked 104th).
The NJIT Highlanders average a field goal percentage of 44.8% this season. The UT Arlington Mavericks have an abysmal record of 2-8 when opponents have a FG% of 44.8% or greater.
The NJIT Highlanders and the UT Arlington Mavericks both rank higher in average effective field goal percentage when compared to their field goal percentages. NJIT is 137th and 83rd in the nation for FG% and eFG% respectively, while UT Arlington is 244th and 206th in these categories.
UT Arlington ranks among the best in the nation in assists at 10th (17.0 assists per game). NJIT is ranked 34th with 16.0 assists per game.
UT Arlington ranks tops in the nation in number of rebounds per game with 43.7 rebounds per game. NJIT is outside the top 100 in terms of rebounding with 35.0 per game (ranked 237th).
The NJIT Highlanders are among the worst defensive rebounding teams (ranked 160th), while the UT Arlington Mavericks are one of the country’s top offensive rebounding teams (ranked 268th).
On average, NJIT forces a turnover rate of 19.3%, ranked ninth in the nation. When UT Arlington turns over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a winning 11-4 record.
