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Logan • Maybe you haven't heard of the New Jersey Institute of Technology, but Utah State men's basketball coach Tim Duryea knows all about the Highlanders.

So does Michigan.

So does St. John's.

NJIT plays the Aggies on Monday night at the Spectrum, hoping to add another notch to its belt as far as upsetting higher-profile opponents.

The Highlanders come off back-to-back 20-win seasons, which ended in the semifinals of the CollegeInsiders.com tournament. Along they way, they defeated have the Wolverines and the Red Storm, so Duryea knows Utah State can't take anything for granted.

"They've done a great job building their program," he said. "… They've grown accustomed to winning."

Utah State is 1-0 leading into its home opener.

Senior forward Jalen Moore scored 22 points on Saturday night, when the Aggies rolled to an impressive 72-56 victory at UC Irvine. The Anteaters led twice — 4-3 and 15-14 — and shot only 29 percent from the floor.

"The thing I liked best," Duryea s0aid, "is the way we defended because that's the thing we've stressed since the beginning of school."

NJIT will test Utah State's defensive resolve.

The Highlanders tuned up for their long trip to Logan with a 100-38 win over Sarah Lawrence College. Senior guard Damon Jones scored 14 points on 5-for-8 three-point shooting.

"He's a strong, aggressive kid offensively," Duryea said.

The home game against NJIT is one of two Utah State plays in the preliminary rounds of next week's Cancun Challenge. Idaho State visits USU on Saturday before the Aggies journey to Mexico next week for games against Purdue and the winner of Auburn-Texas Tech. —

NJIT at Utah State

P At the Spectrum

Tipoff • 6 p.m.

TV • Mountain West Network

Radio • 610 AM, 102.1 FM

Records • Utah State 1-0, NJIT 1-0

Series • First meeting

About the Aggies • They come off a season-opening 72-56 win at UC Irvine. … F Jalen Moore scored 22 points against the Anteaters. He has 1,141 in his career. He needs 24 points to pass Jimmy Moore, his father, for 25th place on Utah State's all-time scoring list. … The Utah State women (1-0) play Montana State at 8:15 p.m. in the second game of a doubleheader.

About the Highlanders • They play in the Atlantic Sun Conference. … They opened the season with a lopsided 100-38 victory over Sarah Lawrence. … They forced 23 turnovers and limited Sarah Lawrence to 22.7 percent shooting. … They improved to 25-0 against non-Division I opponents. … Senior PG Damon Lynn scored 14 points and became NJIT's all-time leading Division I scorer.