UMBC (10-7, 3-1 AE) vs. NJIT (9-11, 4-1 AE) | Thursday, January 22, 6:00 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats | International Feed | Game Notes | 
Hometown Heroes Night presented by High's

RETRIEVER TIP-OFF    

• The Retrievers are competing in their 58th season as well as their 40th season of D1 hoops in Baltimore.
• UMBC has a record of 679-957 (.414) all-time.
• The Retrievers are 480-684 (.412) at the DI level
• The Retrievers are 6-2 at home this season.
• UMBC is 3-0 in games decided by two points or less this season.
• The Dawgs are 5-5 in games decided by single figures.
• The Dawgs own the highest winning percentage in the America East (.588).
• The Retrievers lead the league with a +3.9 scoring margin.
• UMBC leads the AE with a .363 three-point shooting percentage (63rd NCAA).
• UMBC leads the league-lead with 26.5 defensive rebounds per game (75th NCAA).
• The Retrievers have outscored their three America East opponents by a combined total of 54-24 from the free throw line.
• Junior guard Jah'Likai King is 3rd in the league in scoring at 15.1 ppg. and graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr is 6th (13.2 ppg.).
• Armstrong leads the conference in 3-point shooting accuracy (.412, 35th NCAA) and leads the league in 3's per game (2.9, 53rd NCAA). He drilled his 200th career triple last Thursday at Bryant.
• Junior guard Ace Valentine leads the conference with a 3.4 assist/turnover ratio (21st NCAA). He recorded his 250th career assist at Bryant on Thursday evening.

 LAST TIME OUT - KING SHINES ON MLK DAY AS UMBC WINS AT BINGHAMTON

• UMBC cruised to a 78-60 America East Conference victory over the Binghamton Bearcats on Martin Luther King Day at the Events Center. The Retrievers are one of five teams in the conference with just one loss in league play.
• "I'm proud of our guys," said UMBC Head Coach Jim Ferry. "We came out with a defensive disposition this afternoon. I don't think we played to our standards in our last game against Bryant. We didn't have much time to make adjustments, but the guys really bought in. It's a big step; this league is going to come down to the wire, so we just have to work on getting better every day."
• "Having the opportunity to play on Martin Luther King Day with the guys in this locker room is special," Ferry added.  "I'm a big fan of what he accomplished, and I think he's one of the most important people to ever walk the earth. If it wasn't for him, I don't think that our locker room would be as diverse as it is today."
• Junior guard Jah'Likai King led four Retrievers in double-figures with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting. Sophomore forward Caden Diggs (14 points), junior guard Ace Valentine (13 points, seven rebounds), and graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr. (10 points) contributed to the balanced scoring effort.
• King, who eclipsed 20 points for the fifth time this season, scored 11 points for the Retrievers during a 17-4 first half run that provided the visitors with the separation they needed to seize control of the contest.
• UMBC (10-7, 3-1 AE) trailed 14-10 at the 13:33 mark of the opening stanza after a dunk by forward Zyier Beverly (18 points). But King drilled a triple and then converted a jumper in the paint to give the Retrievers their first lead of the afternoon, 15-14, with 12:50 left in the half. Binghamton took its final lead of the game, 16-15, after a second-chance layup by guard Wes Peterson, Jr. (18 points) at the 12.19 mark. The Retrievers responded with ten straight points, capped by a trifecta from Valentine to establish a 25-16 advantage at the 9:28 mark.
• The Retrievers settled for a 38-26 halftime lead as they held Binghamton to just a thirty-nine percent shooting mark (11-for-18) and outscored the hosts by a 26-14 margin inside the paint.
• The Bearcats (4-16, 0-5 AE) were never able to make a run over the final twenty minutes.  The Dawgs widened their lead to 48-33 with 15:49 left after Armstrong Jr. was fouled on a 3-point attempt, swishing all three chances from the line.
• Binghamton trimmed the deficit to 52-41 after a free throw by Beverly with 11:03 left, but that was as close as they could get. The visitors went on an 8-3 mini run to establish a 60-44 lead at the 8:56 mark, essentially putting the game away. Diggs and fifth-year senior guard Cougar Downing swished treys, and junior forward Jose Roberto Tanchyn (eight points, season-best seven caroms) converted a hook shot to account for the scoring.
• UMBC shot 54.4 percent overall (31-of-57) and were 7-for-16 (43.8 percent) from distance. The Retrievers' bench outscored Binghamton's reserves by a 27-8 margin.

SERIES HISTORY WITH NJIT

• The Retrievers are 7-5 against the Highlanders all-time.
• The Dawgs have won three straight in the series.
• UMBC is 3-2 against NJIT in Baltimore.
• The Retrievers averaged 91 ppg. in their two wins last season.

 ABOUT NJIT

• The Highlanders lead the America East with a 4-1 record.
• NJIT is coming off a 79-55 home victory over Bryant on Monday. Sebastion Robinson recorded 22 points and seven boards while David Bolden added 17 points.
• The Highlanders lead the league in opponents field goal percentage (.435), which ranks 165th nationally.
• Robinson is 9th in the league in scoring at 12.6 ppg while Bolden is 13th at 12.0 per game. Bolden is also 5th in the league with 2.1 3's per game and a .339 percentage.
• Ari Fulton is fourth in the league iin rebounding at 6.0 per game.

 PLAY THAT HIT AGAIN MR. DJ

• DJ Armstrong's trey against Morgan State (11/11) was the first time UMBC hit a game-winner in the final five seconds since Craig Beaudion II. (11/20/22 vs. Central Conn.).
• Armstrong Jr. followed that up with a buzzer-beater to defeat Wagner in overtime on Nov. 16.
• Armstrong Jr. was named the America East Co-Player of the Week on Nov. 17.
• Armstrong Jr. was featured on #SCTop10 twice. Teammate Jah'Likai King also made the list after his crossover move and hoop against Penn State York.
• He also came up clutch by hitting two free thows in a one-and-one situation with 0.9 on the clock in the 75-74 win over UNH (1/10).
• DJ also enjoyed a career game at Coppin State with 31 points on 10-of-16 shooting. He drilled a career-best eight treys in 14 tries.
• Armstrong Jr. is 6th in the America East in scoring (13.2 ppg.) and is first in 3s per game (2.0). He's also first on the the circuit in 3-point field goal percentage (.412).
• He needs nine points to reach 900 for his career.

 THE KING HITS A GRAND; NAMED AE PLAYER OF WEEK

• Jah'Likai King went over the 1,000 mark for his career at GW on November 18.  King scored 934 points in his first two seasons at New Haven (DII) before coming to Baltimore this season.
• King was named AE Player of the Week on December 8. The Newburg, New York native averaged 19.5 points while shooting an impressive 54% from the field during two road games last week against Georgetown and Bucknell.
• King started the week by scoring 19 points in a loss to Georgetown on Wednesday and followed it up with 20 points in a victory over Bucknell on Saturday. After trailing 26-25 at halftime against the Bison, UMBC opened the second half with a 14-6 run, establishing their largest lead of the game at 39-32 with 14:11 remaining. King contributed eight points during this crucial stretch.
• Currently, King leads the team in scoring with an average of 15.1 points per game, ranking third in the league. He is also 26th in the league in rebounding, averaging 4.1 caroms per game and is 17th in steals (1.0).

 ACE IN THE HOLE

• Guard Ace Valentine continues to play a key role on both ends of the floor.
• Valentine leads the conference and is 42nd in the nation in assist/turnover ratio (3.4) and is third in the AE in assists per game (4.6).
• The junior has shot the ball well from behind the arc going 22-for-54 (.407) and is 64-of-132 overall (.485).
• He dished his 250th career assist in the loss to Bryant last Thursday.

 CAN YOU DIG IT?

• Sophomore forward Caden Diggs erupted for a career-high 19 points on 7-for-9 shooting in 24 minutes off the bench against Buffalo. Diggs also knocked down a career-best three 3-pointers.
• Diggs recorded his first career double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds earlier in the season against Wagner.
• Diggs has reached double-figures in scoring in six of his last eight contests and is averaging 11.9 points per game during the stretch.

 MILESTONE WATCH   
1200 career points, Jah'Likai King (1,176)
250 career assists, Jah'Likai King (208)
300 career rebounds, Jah'Likai King (289)
900 career points, Josh Odunowo (855)
500 career rebounds, Josh Odunowo (476)
100 career blocks, Josh Odunowo (77)
700 career points, Ace Valentine, (623)
300 career assists, Ace Valentine (259)
500 career rebounds, Paul Greene (474)
550 career points , Paul Greene (503)
900 career points, DJ Armstrong Jr. (891)
225 career 3-pointers, DJ Armstrong Jr. (203)