Orono, Maine -- The Black Bears, who own the nation's sixth longest active win streak (13), are making their eighth consecutive appearance in the America East semifinal round when they host No. 4 NJIT on Tuesday evening at 7 p.m. inside Memorial Gymnasium. Limited tickets remain available for Tuesday's semifinal contest and can be purchased at
GoBlackBears.com/tickets, by phone at 207.581.BEAR, or at the UMaine Athletics box office.
Should Maine be victorious over NJIT, the Black Bears would advance to the America East Championship for the seventh-straight season. Maine, which has more postseason victories (50) than any other America East program, is 8-1 all-time in the semifinal round and have won 11 of its last 12 postseason games. This will be the first-ever postseason meeting between Maine and NJIT.
Tuesday's semifinal game will be streamed on
ESPN+ and can also be heard on the
Black Bear Sports Network or locally at 92.9 FM.
A LOOK AT THE BLACK BEARS:
The Black Bears, who have won 11 of their last 12 postseason contests, recently ran their active win streak to 13 in a row with the quarterfinal victory over Hartford. In the stretch, Maine has won six-straight at home and have held opponents to just 47.5 points per game over the last 13 games. Maine, outscoring opponents by a +13.8 margin over the win streak, is forcing 17.6 turnovers in the streak with 10.3 steals per game. Four Black Bears have posted double-digit scoring averages during the streak; Simon (15.8), Carroll (11.8/9.3 rebs), Orois (10.8/5.8 apg), and Bornemann (10.7). Simon, the league's Player and Defensive Player of the Year, leads the America East in scoring at 16.3 points per game. Simon has registered double-digit scoring efforts in 28 of Maine's 29 regular season games while scoring 20 or more in seven games with four double-doubles. Defensively, Simon leads the league at 2.9 steals per game, 10th best in the nation. Carroll, a three-time All-Conference Second Team selection, leads the league in rebounding at 8.4 per game after pulling down double-digit rebounds in 12 games while featuring five double-doubles during the season. Orois, who received her first All-Conference accolade with a spot on the league's third team, is the league's leader in assists at 5.7 per game. Orois, who has posted six or more assists in 16 games this season including seven of her last eight, checks in 14th best in the nation in assists per game.
A LOOK AT NJIT:
The Highlanders are making their first-ever appearance in the America East semifinals after earning a 47-33 victory over UMass Lowell in the quarterfinal round. NJIT, the league's No. 4 seed, is 8-8 on the road this season. The Highlanders rank sixth in the league in scoring (57.0) and sixth in defense (59.6). NJIT checks in second among America East leaders on the boards, averaging 36.2 rebounds per game, but struggled to take care of the ball with 17.8 (8th) turnovers per game. NJIT features the league's top shot blocking threat, with 4.8 blocks per game. Individually, Kenna Squier leads NJIT at 11.2 points per game. Ellyn Stoll is adding 11.0 points while Lyzi Litwinko is adding 10.7 points and team-best 7.1 rebounds.
SERIES/POSTSEASON SERIES WITH NJIT:
Maine and NJIT meet for the seventh time in history, and the first in the postseason, after the Highlanders joined the America East in the 2020-21 season. The series stands deadlocked at 3-3 after the two teams split the season series, with each winning on the opposition's home court. Maine is 2-2 all-time at home against NJIT. NJIT defeated Maine in overtime, 67-59, on Jam. 2 in Bangor before the Black Bears earned a 77-43 victory on Feb. 19 at NJIT. Simon, Carroll, and Orois have each tallied double-figures in both meetings between the two programs this season. Prior to NJIT joining the league, the two teams met in 2009, a contest won by NJIT in Newark by a score of 63-50. The first-ever meeting came in 2008 where the Black Bears were defeated on their home court, 68-60.
Maine, which recently earned its 50th career conference tournament victory with the win over Hartford, enters action 21-3 all-time in the semifinal round. Maine has won six-straight semifinal contests as it looks to make an appearance in the conference title game for the seventh-straight season.
Tale of the Tape
| Maine (19-10, 15-3) |
Category |
NJIT (15-14, 9-8) |
| 58.8 |
Points Per Game |
57.0 |
| 56.7 |
Opponent Points Per Game |
59.6 |
| +2.1 |
Scoring Margin |
-2.6 |
| 40.9 |
Field Goal Percentage |
39.9 |
| 29.2 |
3-Point Field Goal Percentage |
27.6 |
| 67.2 |
Free Throw Percentage |
67.7 |
| 32.8 |
Rebounds Per Game |
36.2 |
| -1.5 |
Rebound Margin |
0.0 |
| 14.3 |
Assists Per Game |
9.3 |
| 13.7 |
Turnovers Per Game |
17.8 |
| 16.2 |
Turnovers Forced Per Game |
14.3 |
| 8.7 |
Steals Per Game |
5.2 |
| 2.6 |
Blocks Per Game |
4.8 |
-UMaine-
