VESTAL, N.Y. - Playing its third game in six days, Binghamton men's basketball (9-9, 0-3 America East) welcomes longtime SUNY rival Albany (14-5, 2-2 AE) to the Events Center for a Monday night matchup. The teams tip at 7 p.m. at Dr. Bai Lee Court and the game will be shown on ESPN3.

The Bearcats will look to quickly move past Saturday's 97-65 loss at Hartford - the team's third straight defeat to open conference play. The host Hawks had a record-setting day from beyond the arc, drilling 18-of-23 three-pointers and shooting 61 percent in the 32-point win. Hartford cashed in 11 treys in the first half when they shot 65 percent and built a 26-point cushion. Binghamton steadied itself with 35 points on 50 percent shooting in the second half but the damage was done.

Junior guard J.C. Show and junior center Thomas Bruce contributed 11 and 10 points, respectively. Junior guard Timmy Rose added nine points and four assists. 

Show leads the Bearcats and ranks ninth in the league with 14.8 points per game. Bruce is first in the America East in blocks (2.8/game) and field goal percentage (60.0) and is second in rebounding (9.8 rpg.).  

Binghamton plays four of its next six games at home, where the team is 5-2 this season. 

Albany has won two in a row after dropping its first two conference games. On Saturday, the Great Danes rocked Maine in the first half, building a 48-10 advantage en route to a comfortable 84-66 win. Before that Albany topped Stony Brook at home, 78-65. In December the team played Louisville to the wire in a two-point loss and it's been among the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 all season long. 

The Great Danes are led by the junior guard tandem of Joe Cremo (17.8 ppg.) and David Nichols (15.2 ppg.). Head coach Will Brown returned four starters from his 21-14 team that reached the America East title game a year ago.  

Since both teams elevated to Division I and entered the America East, Albany leads the all-time series, 20-13. The Bearcats began the Division I era of the rivalry with eight wins in nine games between 2002-05. The teams then split 10 games between 2005-10. But the Great Danes have rattled off 14 straight victories, 10 of which have come by double digits. Last season, Albany won 84-65 at home and 66-54 in Vestal. The first game between the two teams took place in the 1948-49 season (a 76-67 BU win).