VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton men's basketball closes out the 2018 calendar year with a daunting matchup against the highest-ranked opponent in program history when the Bearcats (4-9) face No. 2 Michigan (12-0) Sunday afternoon in Ann Arbor. The teams tip at noon at already sold-out Crisler Center (12,707) in a game that will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network. 

The Bearcats are coming off a strong week that saw the team push Notre Dame to the closing minutes before BU knocked off LIU Brooklyn with a buzzer-beater on Dec. 21 at the Barclays Center.  

QUICK HITS
• This is Binghamton's 73rd season of basketball, 18th at the Division I level
• BU was picked to finish 6th (of 9) in the America East Preseason Coaches' Poll
• This is the last game of the 2018 calendar year
• This is the highest-ranked opponent in Binghamton's basketball history
• BU plays a ranked opponent for the first time in three years and faces a top-5 ranked team for the seventh time in program history (0-6)
• BU faces Michigan for the third time and faces a Big Ten team for the fifth time

Last time out
• Stunned LIU Brooklyn 68-67 when senior guard J.C. Show drilled a corner 3-pointer at the buzzer. Show first made a crucial FT with 0:02 left before intentionally missing the second, which then went out of bounds off LIU. Freshman guard Sam Sessoms found Show in the right corner and he swished home the winner. The shot was featured at No. 10 on ESPN's SportsCenter Top Plays.
• Show wound up with 15 points (13 in second half) and three steals
• Senior forward Chancellor Barnard had team-high 18 points with seven boards
• Senior forward Caleb Stewart, who set screen to free up Show on winner, added nine rebounds and four blocks
• Senior guard Everson Davis had 13 pts and Sessoms had 11 - all in second half  

About Michigan
• Ranked No. 2 in the country, thanks to a 12-0 start (8-0 at home)
• Reigning Big Ten champions and NCAA runnerup
• Returned three starters and 10 lettermen from that 33-8 team
• Have beaten North Carolina and Villanova by a combined 44 pts. this season
• Are 51-8 at home over the last five seasons 
• Have held opponents to just 55.3 points this season
• Coming off 71-50 home win over Air Force on Dec. 22 
    
All-time series vs. Michigan
• Michigan leads the all-time series, 2-0 after winning on Nov. 15, 2004 (59-46) and on Dec. 12, 2012 (67-39) at the Crisler Center
• In the last meeting six years ago, Michigan held BU to just 14 first-half points (6-of-22 FG), led by 20 at the break and cruised to the 67-39 home win

Bearcats rank third in nation in blocks
Despite opening the season without the top shot blocker in the America East (Thomas Bruce), BU has racked up 85 blocks through 14 games (6.5), led the country for a week and currently ranks third, behind Duke and Washington. Individually, senior forward Caleb Stewart has 28 blocks (2.2/game, 2nd in AE) and senior forward Chancellor Barnard has 24 blocks (4th). The Bearcats lead the America East in blocks, thanks to four players in the league's top-9.   

Sessoms ranks 8th in nation in freshman scoring
Freshman guard Sam Sessoms ranks fourth in the conference in scoring (17.7 ppg.) and ranks eighth in the entire nation in freshman scoring. He has scored in double figures in 12 of his first 13 collegiate games. He has scored 30 combined second-half points in his last two games, including 19 at Notre Dame.   

Barnard shooting lofty 73 percent, ranks 9th in kenpom FG%
Senior forward Chancellor Barnard has converted 50-of-69 shots (.725) and ranks ninth in kenpom's "effective FG percentage" category. Barnard's 73 percent would rank second in the nation but he falls short of the minimum FGs.

Sessoms named America East Rookie of Week for fourth time
Freshman guard Sam Sessoms earned his fourth America East Rookie of the Week honor in seven weeks (Nov. 12, Nov. 26, Dec. 10, Dec. 24) after averaging 18.0 points on 52 percent shooting in games against Notre Dame and LIU. 

Show shines on NBA stage, stuns LIU with buzzer 3 at Barclays Center 
Binghamton played a first-ever game at an NBA venue when BU faced LIU on Dec. 21 at the Barclays Center, home of the Brooklyn Nets. Senior guard J.C. Show made the most of the opportunity, scoring four points in the game's final two seconds, including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to lift BU to a 68-67 win. At the free throw line down 67-64 with 0:02 left, Show made the first FT and intentionally missed the second to give BU a chance at the rebound. The ball went out of bounds off LIU, giving BU the inbounds underneath the basket. Guard Sam Sessoms found Show off a Caleb Stewart screen and Show buried the game-winning 3-pointer from the right corner.   

BU faces its highest-ranked opponent in program history
When Binghamton plays No. 2 Michigan it will be the highest-ranked opponent in program history, eclipsing the pair of games against No. 3 Michigan State (2015) and the same Michigan program (2012). The Bearcats are 0-11 all-time vs. ranked opponents. 

All-time against nationally-ranked opponents
Feb. 22, 2001 No. 25 PROVIDENCE 119, Binghamton 58
Nov.18, 2001 No. 21 SYRACUSE 103, Binghamton 56
Dec.29, 2003 No. 12 KANSAS 78, Binghamton 46
Dec.13, 2003 No. 19 SYRACUSE 75, Binghamton 54
Dec.11, 2004 No. 4 SYRACUSE 86, Binghamton 56 
Nov.23, 2005 No. 5 OKLAHOMA 88, Binghamton 60
Mar. 19, 2009 No. 5 Duke 86, Binghamton 62 (NCAA tournament)
Nov. 11, 2011 No. 21 MISSOURI 88, Binghamton 59
Dec. 12, 2012 No. 3 MICHIGAN 67, Binghamton 39
Dec. 7, 2013:   No. 4 SYRACUSE 93, Binghamton 65
Dec. 5, 2015:  No. 3 MICHIGAN ST. 76, Binghamton 33
. 
Pair of Bearcats moving toward 1,000-point mark
Seniors J.C. Show and Caleb Stewart are marching toward the 1K mark for their scoring careers. Show, who played his first collegiate season at Bucknell, currenty sits at 968 points. Stewart played single seasons at South Carolina-Aiken and Saint Leo before finishing his last two seasons at Binghamton. He has 870 career points.