Binghamton Game Notes
Hartford Game Notes

Contact: John Hartrick (hartrick@binghamton.edu)

VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton men's basketball aims for its first conference win when the Bearcats (3-12, 0-2 America East) continue their tight rivalry with Hartford (5-11, 0-1 AE) Wednesday night. The teams will tip at 7 p.m. at Dr. Bai Lee Court at the Events Center. Half of the 30 games in the all-time series have been decided by six or fewer points, including five of the last eight matchups.

QUICK HITS
•    The Bearcats have dropped eight of their last nine and are trying to regain footing before facing arguably the top two programs in the conference (Albany and Vermont) in back-to-back games next week.
•    With his 20-point, 11-rebound performance at UNH, sophomore forward Willie Rodriguez (589 career points, 274 rebs.) moved past the halfway point in his journey toward joining the 1,000-point, 500-rebound club. He would become the first Bearcat to reach that plateau in the program's Division I era.  
•    Binghamton's current rotation features no seniors and just two juniors. The team's underclassmen account for 82% of the minutes and 83% of the scoring. Of the team's eight players averaging double-digit minutes, seven are underclassmen. The 11 underclassmen gives BU the eighth-highest underclassmen percentage in the country (73.3%).

LAST TIME OUT
•    At New Hampshire on Saturday, sophomore forward Willie Rodriguez scored 16 of his game-high 20 points in the second half but it wasn't enough as BU dropped a 58-43 decision.
•    Rodriguez notched his third double-double of the season and sixth in two years. He grabbed 11 rebounds and added a pair of steals in 31 minutes.
•    Freshman center Thomas Bruce hit 5-of-5 from the floor for 10 points and added seven boards in 33 minutes. Bruce had a dunk in each half and now has seven on the season.
•    Freshman guard Everson Davis tallied eight points with a team-high three assists.
•    The Bearcats shot just 36% and missed 17-of-20 three-point attempts.

NEXT UP
•    Binghamton next travels two hours east to face two-time defending America East champion Albany on Monday night. The Great Danes own a 10-game win streak in the series between the two teams. 

ABOUT HARTFORD
•    The Hawks dropped their America East opener at UMass Lowell on Wednesday, 80-76. The host River Hawks shot 55% and made free throws down the stretch to grab the back-and-forth affair.
•    Senior guard Taylor Dyson scored a career-high 27 points (nine 3s).
•    Newcomer Pancake Thomas leads the team in scoring (15.0 ppg.) and rebounding (6.4 rpg.).
•    Hartford launches an average of 27 three-pointers per game (most in AE) and is hitting 35% (4th in AE).
•    The Hawks graduated six seniors, including four starters, from a 14-16 team of a year ago. They were picked to finish sixth in the Preseason Poll.       
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. HARTFORD
•    Thanks to nine straight wins, Hartford holds a 19-11 lead in the series.
•    Five of the nine wins during the streak have come by six or fewer points.
•    The last four regular season games have been decided by a combined 19 points.
•    Last year Hartford won by 10 at home and then a month later the Hawks held off a spirited BU rally in the closing minute to win 62-61 in Vestal.