Central Plains FFA Chapter

03/18 03:42 CDT Merrimack and NJIT meet in NIT Merrimack and NJIT meet in NIT By The Associated Press NJIT Highlanders (18-12, 9-8 America East) at Merrimack Warriors (19-12, 16-6 MAAC) North Andover, Massachusetts; Thursday, 7 p.m. EDT BOTTOM LINE: Merrimack and NJIT meet in the National Invitation Tournament. The Warriors have gone 16-6 against MAAC teams, with a 3-6 record in non-conference play. Merrimack is second in the MAAC with 11.1 offensive rebounds per game led by Madison Roman averaging 3.2. The Highlanders are 9-8 in America East play. NJIT scores 65.8 points and has outscored opponents by 2.9 points per game. Merrimack makes 40.6% of its shots from the field this season, which is 2.1 percentage points higher than NJIT has allowed to its opponents (38.5%). NJIT has shot at a 44.8% clip from the field this season, 6.8 percentage points above the 38.0% shooting opponents of Merrimack have averaged. TOP PERFORMERS: Lydia Melaschenko averages 2.8 made 3-pointers per game for the Warriors, scoring 11.0 points while shooting 35.4% from beyond the arc. Mia Fiore is averaging 13.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.6 steals over the last 10 games. Olivia Kulyk averages 2.5 made 3-pointers per game for the Highlanders, scoring 15.0 points while shooting 36.9% from beyond the arc. Alejandra Zuniga is shooting 39.7% and averaging 16.6 points over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Warriors: 8-2, averaging 66.8 points, 35.1 rebounds, 15.8 assists, 10.0 steals and 3.7 blocks per game while shooting 40.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 56.7 points per game. Highlanders: 5-5, averaging 61.6 points, 31.3 rebounds, 10.7 assists, 6.2 steals and 5.5 blocks per game while shooting 43.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 59.4 points. ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.