Arena #119: NJIT Wellness & Events Center - New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) vs. Cornell

After a quick detour to the Big Apple for two days to watch my UConn Huskies in the 2k Empire Classic at the Garden, we headed across the river to Newark for a full day of sporting events.  We started at the Prudential Center in the early afternoon for some NHL action before making the mile walk or so from the Pru to the campus of the New Jersey Institute of Technology or NJIT for a contest between the NJIT Highlanders and the Cornell Big Red.  I’m sure there aren’t too many people that even realize NJIT is a Division 1 school (they transitioned a few years ago), but they had a quaint, but surprisingly modern, arena, including a fairly sizable team store located on the concourse.  For a fan like myself who likes to feel like I’m part of the action, I love these kind of arenas where I can sit in the first couple rows for cheap and hear shoes squeaking and coaches cussing out their players.  Having seen Cornell get handled pretty easily by Colgate a few days earlier in Ithaca, I wasn’t sure how competitive this game would be, but it turned out Cornell found their offense in a week’s time as they hung 86 on the Highlanders in this one.  The game was actually pretty competitive throughout with Cornell hitting their free throws late to ice the game and end up with a sizable win at the final horn.

Entrance to the NJIT Wellness and Events Center

Small, but appropriate arena size for a school like NJIT

Always a fan of the state outline silhouetted as part of the center court logo

Cornell taking the ball to the hoop against the Highlanders

Cornell for 3!