NEWARK, N.J. - Junior Ryan Woods scored 15 of his game-high 19 points in the second half to lead NJIT to a 72-57 victory over North Dakota in Great West Conference men's basketball action on Saturday at the Fleisher Athletic Center.
Sophomore Aaron Anderson (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) led a quartet of Sioux players in double figures with 14 and classmate Brandon Brekke (East Grand Forks, Minn.) posted a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. The loss drops UND (11-13) to 3-4 in Great West play, while NJIT (11-13) improved to 4-3 in league action.
The difference in this one was turnovers as the Highlanders forced UND into a season high 25, scoring 29 points off those miscues. Eighteen of those came in the first half alone as NJIT built a 33-24 advantage at the break.
"It's hard to win, home or away, in anyone's gym when you turn the ball over 18 times in a half," UND head coach Brian Jones said. "We played well to only be down nine at the half, but this late in the year it is about execution and doing the little things. We didn't do that on the offensive end and that put pressure on our defense."
Sophomores Troy Huff (Milwaukee, Wis.) and Jamal Webb (Buffalo, N.Y.) kept UND in the game during those opening 20 minutes with the 3-point shot. The visitors knocked down 5-of-11 (45 percent) from beyond the arc as Huff and Webb both had a pair.
The Sioux, who committed only a season-low eight turnovers at home in the win over the Highlanders on Jan. 28, limited their turnovers to seven after the break, but made only two from distance to finish the game 7-for-23 (30.4 percent). Huff finished with 12, while Webb added 11.
A dunk by junior Mitch Wilmer (Warroad, Minn.) put UND within six at 39-33 and after a miss by NJIT, Anderson had a 3-pointer rattle in and out from the corner that would have made it a three-point contest. NJIT quickly turned the miss into a fastbreak layup, then followed with a 3-pointer to push the lead back to double figures.
Anderson would put UND with single digits again thanks to a 3-pointer with just under six-and-a-half minutes to play, trimming the deficit to 54-46, but Woods would not let the Sioux getting any closer down the stretch. He made three consecutive long jumpers and a 15-for-17 effort from the foul line by the home team in the second half iced the game.
Brekke's double-double was his fourth of the season as UND held a 34-32 advantage on the glass. The teams shared the same field-goal percentage at 42.9.
UND remains on the road for two non-conference games next week, beginning on Thursday at Louisiana Tech. Tipoff against the Bulldogs is set for 8 p.m. CT.
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