VESTAL, N.Y. – Junior guard Imani Watkins scored a game-high 25 points, powering Binghamton (12-12, 7-4 AE) to a 76-61 win over Vermont (7-16, 4-7 AE) in a America East women's basketball game on Monday night at Dr. Bai Lee Court at the Events Center. With the victory, the Bearcats move into sole possession of third place in the conference with five regular-season games remaining.

Watkins, who reached the 20-point mark for the third straight game, was 7-of-14 from the field and nailed five of her nine three-point attempts. She also added a team-high eight rebounds and dished out four assists.

In addition, with 1,362 career points, Watkins moves into fourth place all time in Binghamton program history. Against the Catamounts, she surpassed current Bearcat Associate Head Coach Leah Truncale, who scored 1,341 points from 1998-02.

The Bearcats had three other players reach double figures in scoring. Redshirt sophomore guard Jasmine Sina netted 14 points and tied her career high with eight assists. Junior center Alyssa James finished with 12 points, seven rebounds, two blocked shots and drew three charges. Off the bench, sophomore forward Rebecca Carmody added 10 points and three assists.

It was a strong second half that was the difference for the Bearcats. Down 30-29 at the break, the Bearcats shot 55 percent (16-of-29) during the final two periods.

"We put together a great second half," head coach Linda Cimino said. "We shot the ball very well, didn't turn the ball over and did not allow second chance points. We really stepped up offensively and made some big shots."

The key run in the third quarter was a 22-8 blitz in a span of 6:00 exactly that put the Bearcats ahead 54-44 with 1:39 left to go. Carmody was the catalyst during that stretch, scoring eight of her points.

Vermont got to within 54-51 with 9:05 left in regulation but a 16-4 run over the ensuing 6:01 gave Binghamton a commanding 70-55 advantage. The Bearcats hit four three-point field goals during that stretch, including a pair by Watkins.

In the final 1:34, Watkins sealed the win with six straight points. In the process, she was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line.

Sydney Smith led Vermont with 24 points, going 9-for-13 from the field. She connected on six of her nine three-point field goal attempts. Hannah Crymble added 18 points and a game-high nine rebounds.

Binghamton, which came into the game leading the America East with 7.6 three-point field goals per game, tied a season high with 12 treys. The Bearcats also hit 12 three pointers at Ohio back on Dec. 19.

The Bearcats committed a season-low seven turnovers and their 17 assists tied their second-highest total of the season. At the other end of the court, Binghamton scored 25 point off of turnovers and allowed just four second-chance points.

Off the bench, the Bearcats outscored the Catamounts 17-5. In addition to Carmody's 10 points, freshman guard Carly Boland added seven points, four rebounds, two assists a block and a steal.

Binghamton heads to Albany on Thursday for a 7 p.m. game.

NOTES: Watkins, who is now averaging a career-best 19.1 points per game, has reached the 20-point mark in scoring 12 times this season and 28 times during her career … James came into the game leading the America East with 2.0 blocks per game … Sina came into the contest ranked first in the conference with 2.7 three-point field goals per game. She had four treys against Vermont.