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HOUSTON – After a week-long layoff, the HBU women's basketball team returns home for one game on Thursday, Feb. 17, as NJIT comes to Sharp Gym to close out the season series. Tip-off is set for a 5:15 pm start.
NJIT leads the all-time series, 3-0, as the Highlanders defeated the Huskies, 82-55, back on Jan. 15 in Newark. Three Huskies finished in double-figures, led by Destini Texada with 16 points and nine rebounds. Megan Green and Jamie Spriggs each scored 12. Rayven Johnson scored 30 points while hitting 10 three-pointers, as she went 8-for-8 from beyond the arc in the first half. She was later named Co-Great West Conference Player of the Week for her efforts. Jessica Gerald scored 28 points, while Uju Nwanko came off the bench to score 10.
HBU (2-21, 0-8 GWC) hasn't played since an 80-67 loss at UT-Pan American on Feb. 9. Texada and Tia Jackson combined for 43 of the team's 67 points, as Texada led the Huskies with 22 points and Jackson scored a career-high 21 points. Spriggs came off the bench to score six points and grab a team-high seven rebounds. UTPA's Donna Jackson led all scorers with 25 points, as both she and Erin Lewis recorded double-doubles. Jackson also grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds, while Lewis scored 12 points and had 10 assists.
The Huskies are ranked seventh in the conference in scoring offense (53.5 ppg) and sixth in scoring defense (78.3 ppg). They are ranked fifth in rebounding offense (35.5 rpg) and sixth in rebounding defense (42.1 rpg).
Texada is ranked ninth in the conference in scoring, averaging 12.8 ppg. Spriggs is ranked 15th, averaging 9.3 ppg and Jackson is 19th, averaging 8.1 ppg.
On the boards, Texada is tied for second, averaging 8.1 rpg while Spriggs is 16th and Ernesta Griciunaite is 20th, averaging 4.7 and 4.5 rpg, respectively.
Texada is tied for first in the league in field goal percentage, as she is hitting 54 percent of her shots, tied with North Dakota's Allysa Wall. Spriggs is ranked fourth, hitting 52 percent of her shots.
Jackson is tied for fourth in assists, dishing out 3.8 per game. Green is ranked sixth in three pointers made, averaging 1.8 per game. Texada is tied for second in defensive rebounds, averaging 5.4 per contest.
NJIT (7-14, 3-3 GWC) lost twice at North Dakota and South Dakota to even its conference record at 3-3. The Highlanders closed out the Dakota road trip with a 76-40 defeat at South Dakota on Feb. 12. Kimberly Dweck was the only Highlander in double figures, as she scored 10 points. Johnson scored nine points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. Emily Schartner had three of the team's seven steals. Alexis Yackley scored a game-high 18 points for USD.
NJIT is sixth in the conference in scoring offense (55.5 ppg) and third in scoring defense (66.8 ppg). The Highlanders are seventh in rebounding offense (33.3 rpg) and fifth in rebounding defense (41.6 rpg). They are tied for third in the league in field-goal percentage defense, as opponents are shooting 41 percent and third in three point-field goal percentage defense, as opponents are hitting 33 percent of their shots. NJIT is ranked third in steals, averaging 8.0 per game.
Individually, Gerald is fifth in the conference in scoring, averaging 16.1 ppg, while Johnson is 13th averaging 10.9 ppg.
Ivana Seric is tied for eighth in rebounding, averaging 6.1 boards a game. Johnson is one spot behind her, in 10th place, averaging 5.9 rpg.
Gerald is ranked fourth in free throw percentage, hitting 80 percent of her shots.
HBU and NJIT have faced five common opponents: UT-Pan American, Utah Valley, Chicago State, North Dakota and South Dakota. HBU is 0-7 while NJIT is 2-3. NJIT played at DePaul on Jan. 20 and lost, 90-43. DePaul is currently ranked 11th in the country.
