The college basketball offseason is here, and we decided to have some fun over the next few months, ranking ALL 364 teams in D1. Number 340 is NJIT basketball.
Before you say we’re crazy – or that all of this is up for debate, let’s go over the very intricate process of how we came to this conclusion. We took a very statistical approach – with the help of Chat GPT – taking into consideration everything from March Madness wins and finishes, to AP Poll appearances, to conference players of the year. And then, a good friend of ours, Scott Blanchard, took our approach to the MAX.
Click here to visit the FIRST article, which explains how the formula works!
Here’s the breakdown of NJIT basketball!
NCAA Tournament Success
- Championships: 0
- Finals appearances: 0
- Final Fours: 0
- Elite Eights: 0
- Sweet 16s: 0
- NCAA wins: 0
- Bids: 0
Consistency Over Time
- Wins per season: 11.3
- Bids per season: 0
- AP Polls: 0
Player Quality & Talent
- All-Americans: 0
- NBA players drafted & played: 0
- Conference Players of the Year: 2
Conference & Other Success
- Conference regular season titles: 1
- Conference tournament titles: 0
- NIT titles: 0
- Other tournament titles: 0
Overall scoop on NJIT basketball
When you look at the history of NJIT basketball, it’s nearly impossible to ignore the famous 0-29 season in 2007-08. With the 1-30 finish the year after, it made for a brutal 1-59 stretch over two seasons. And the 06-07 year, which was their first in D1, wasn’t much better, going 5-24.
But since then, there’s been a lot more good than bad. NJIT has had four winning seasons since 2012-13, including a pair of 20-win seasons.
And you also have to give the program credit for always seeming to switch leagues. Since 2006, they’ve been independent twice, a part of the no-longer existent Great West Conference, the Atlantic Sun, and now, the America East.
The GWC was arguably NJIT’s best years. It was honestly one of the worst conferences in college basketball history – just a look at KenPom’s history will tell you that. But two Highlanders won Conference POY – Isaiah Wilkerson in 2012 and Chris Flores in 2013.
The current state of NJIT basketball seems to be improving. Grant Billmeier took over in 2023, and after two really bad seasons, they went 16-17 this past year, with a 10-6 record in conference. As the program still searches for its first NCAA Tournament bid, they seem to be in good hands.