VESTAL, N.Y. - With a playoff spot already clinched, Binghamton basketball (8-20, 4-9 America East) hosts Hartford (15-13, 8-5 AE) on Wednesday looking to improve its seed with just three regular season games remaining. The teams tip at 7 p.m. at the Events Center in a game broadcast on ESPN+.

Freshman guard Sam Sessoms continues to lead the Bearcats in scoring (18.1 ppg.) and assists (3.3 apg.). Senior forward Caleb Stewart is averaging 10.8 points and a team-high 7.3 rebounds. Senior guard J.C. Show has scored 20+ in two of his last three games and has bumped up his scoring average to 10.6 ppg.

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 18th America East season for BU, which is 106-170 (.384) all-time
• BU has clinched a spot in the AE playoffs and can finish anywhere from fifth to eighth place   

Last time out
• BU pushed AE-leading Vermont to final minute in 69-63 loss Saturday at home
• On Senior Day, senior guard J.C. Show drilled 6-of-6 3-pointers en route to 22 points and BU shot 54% in second half to put a scare into the Catamounts
• Freshman guard Sam Sessoms added 11 second-half points
• BU starting forwards Caleb Stewart and Chancellor Barnard were saddled with foul trouble and were limited to just 17 minutes apiece       

About Hartford
• Have won four of last five games and three straight on road
• Coming off 75-73 road win at Lowell on Saturday
• Scoring 74.0 points per game (3rd in AE) and lead league in 3-pt. FG (9.7/game)
• Boast three all-conference players on roster (Carroll, Lynch, Dunne)
• Returned three starters from 19-win team that played in CIT
• Picked to finish second in AE Preseason Poll

All-time series vs.Hartford
• Hartford leads the series 24-13 and has won four straight and 14 of last 16
• Hawks hold 10-7 margin in Vestal 
• Home team has won four of the last five meetings
• One month ago the host Hawks blitzed BU with a record 19 3-pointers (12 in first half) and rolled to an 86-60 win in West Hartford
• The last time BU beat Hartford was a 76-55 win two seasons ago in Vestal

Binghamton clinches playoff spot, can finish anywhere from fifth to eighth
With three regular season games remaining, BU has clinched a top-eight playoff spot and can finish anywhere from fifth to eighth in the standings. After Wednesday's game, BU makes the long trek to Bangor for a Saturday morning (11 a.m.) tilt at Maine. The Bearcats then conclude the regular season with a home game against longtime SUNY rival Albany next Wednesday. 

BU defense putting squeeze on top AE offenses
In its last two games, BU's zone defense has kept the league's top two offensive units below their season averages. In the win at UMass Lowell, BU held the top scoring team in the AE to 66 points, 12.5 points below its season average. In the six-point loss to league-leading Vermont, BU kept the No. 2 offense 5.7 points below its season average. The Bearcats have kept each of their their last four AE foes under 70 points and are 2-2 in those games. To keep the string alive, they will have to contain the league's No. 3 offense in Hartford (74.0 ppg.) - a unit that netted 86 points in the first meeting.

Sessoms has six Rookie of Week honors, is frontrunner for AE Rookie of Year award
Freshman guard Sam Sessoms has been named America East Rookie of the Week six times this season (Nov. 12, Nov. 26, Dec. 10, Dec. 24, Jan. 7, Feb. 11) and is the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year honors. Only six America East players in league history (30+ years) have received more rookie honors. His 18.9 scoring average in conference games is currently the second-highest in program history (D.J. Rivera averaged 19.7 ppg. in 2008-09).    

Show heating up as his collegiate career winds down
Senior guard J.C. Show has averaged 19.6 points in his last three games, including a pair of 20+ performances. He has made 15-of-26 (58%) from 3-point range in that span and is coming off a season-high 22 points against Vermont. Show has 885 points in 2+ seasons in a BU uniform, which ranks seventh all-time. He has 1,121 total collegiate points (236 for Bucknell as freshman).  

Bearcats lead America East, rank 13th in nation in blocks
Despite opening the season without the top shot blocker in the America East (Thomas Bruce), BU has racked up 135 blocks through 28 games, tops in the AE and 13th-most in the country. In blocks per game, BU led the country for a week and currently ranks 15th (4.9/game). Individually, senior forward Caleb Stewart swatted a career-high five vs. Columbia and has 51 blocks, which ranks third in the conference and 52nd in the country. His 1.82 average is 64th. Senior forward Chancellor Barnard had a career-high seven-block showing (all in second half) against UMass Lowell on Jan. 23 and has 40 blocks (4th in AE). 

Stewart among AE leaders in rebounding
Prior to the foul-plagued Vermont game on Saturday, senior forward Caleb Stewart had a lengthy string of big rebound performances. In the eight previous games, Stewart averaged 10.3 boards, including five straight double-digit games. Stewart is fifth in the America East in rebounding (7.3) and also ranks third in the AE in blocks (1.8).   

Sessoms still fifth in nation in freshman scoring, sets records
Freshman guard Sam Sessoms ranks third in the conference in scoring (18.1 ppg.), is fifth in the entire nation in freshman scoring and fourth in the nation among players 6-feet or shorter. He has 11 20+ point games this season (3rd most in BU single-season history). Sessoms ranks 31st in the country in made field goals. He already has established BU freshman records for points, assists, steals and 3-pointers in a season.