NJIT Highlanders vs Iona Gaels Prediction, 11/5/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: NJIT Highlanders vs Iona Gaels

Date: Thursday, November 5, 2026

Location: Hynes Athletics Center in New Rochelle, NY

TV: ESPN+

Hynes Athletics Center is the location where the Iona Gaels (18-14 last year) will attempt to defeat the NJIT Highlanders (16-17 last season) on Thursday.

The NJIT Highlanders played Dayton and took a loss by a score of 89-58 in their last contest. In relation to personal fouls, the Highlanders ended up walking away with 17 and Dayton recorded 23 personal fouls. They knocked down 9 of 26 attempts from three-point range. Dayton finished 85.7% at the charity stripe by making 18 of 21 shots. Additionally, Dayton collected 47 rebounds (15 offensive, 32 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. Dayton distributed 19 assists and had 7 steals for the contest. With respect to defending, NJIT let their opponent shoot 47.7% from the field on 31 out of 65 shooting. They also dished out 9 dimes for this game in addition to creating 12 turnovers and earning 8 steals. In reference to pulling down rebounds, they collected a total of 23 with 9 of them being of the offensive variety. At the free throw line, the Highlanders knocked down 15 of 25 shots for a rate of 60.0%. NJIT walked away from the contest with a 34.5% FG percentage (20 out of 58) and knocked down 3 out of their 25 shots from beyond the perimeter.

Matheo Coffi is someone who was important for the game. He ended up with 12 points on 4 of 9 shooting. He played 28 mins played and also grabbed 5 rebounds. He went 44.4% from the field and also recorded 1 assist.

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NJIT comes into this matchup after finishing with a record of 16-17 last year. They averaged 67.0 points per contest (346th in Division 1) while hitting 40.6% from the field. The Highlanders shot 30.3% on 3-point shots (233 of 770) and 70.7% from the charity stripe. As a team, NJIT pulled in 34.5 rebounds per game and accumulated 355 dimes last season, which had them ranked 346th in college hoops in terms of passing the ball. They gave up possession 11.6 times per game and as a group committed 18.2 fouls on a nightly basis.

On defense, the Highlanders were able to force their opponents into 11.4 turnovers per game and they drew 16.7 personal fouls. They relinquished 32.6% on shots from beyond the arc while they were 159th in the country in PPG allowed (73.2). The Highlanders defensively gave up a field goal percentage of 43.3% (833 of 1,922) and they relinquished 38.0 boards per game as a group. They were ranked 168th in college in giving up assists with 437 surrendered last year.

The last time they took the court, the Iona Gaels went home victorious with a score of 56-55 when they played Vermont. Concerning cleaning the glass, Iona allowed Vermont to grab 36 in all (12 on the offensive glass). They finished 25.8% from three-point range by hitting 8 of 31 and finished the contest at 9 of 12 from the charity stripe (75.0%). The Gaels permitted Vermont to convert 19 of 53 attempts from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 35.8% for the matchup. When the final whistle was blown, the Gaels finished the game shooting 22 for 57 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 38.6%. In reference to shots from distance, Iona knocked down 7 out of their 19 tries (36.8%). They were able to make 5 of the free throw tries for a rate of 41.7%. Vermont had 13 personal fouls for this game which took the Gaels to the free throw line for a total of 12 shots. They turned the ball over 12 times, while recording 9 steals for the game. The Gaels collected 19 defensive rebounds and 10 offensive rebounds totaling 29 for the game.

Kevon Vanderhorst ended up having an impact for the Gaels in this contest. He converted 10 of 15 for the game giving him a rate of 66.7%, and added 6 rebounds. He totaled 27 points in his 34 mins on the hardwood and accumulated 1 assist in this matchup.

Iona had a mark of 18-14 last season. The Gaels committed 16.2 personal fouls every game and they connected on 70.7% from the charity stripe. They dished out assists 14.0 times per contest (168th in college) and they lost possession via turnover 12.0 times per contest. Iona earned 2,363 points over the course of last season (73.8 per game) and they grabbed 35.6 boards per game. In terms of offensive execution, the Gaels shot 43.8% from the floor, which ranked them 267th in Division 1.

The Iona defense gave up 30.6% on 3-point attempts (245 of 801) and opponents made 73.3% of their shots from the free throw line. They allowed 17.0 dimes and 37.4 boards on a nightly basis, which ranked them 269th and 332nd in college hoops. The Gaels on defense were ranked 154th in college in points allowed per contest with 73.1. They forced 11.6 turnovers per game and allowed teams to shoot 42.7% from the field (90th in the nation).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Iona

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