VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton men's basketball makes its return to the postseason on Saturday when the seventh-seeded Bearcats (9-22) face second-seeded Stony Brook (24-7) at 7 p.m. at Island Federal Arena on Long Island. It will be the fifth time in eight years that the two teams have squared off in the tournament quarterfinals. The underdog Bearcats enter the matchup having won three straight road games but are 2-19 in their last 21 head-to-head games against the Seawolves. 

On the eve of the announcement of the all-conference teams, freshman guard Sam Sessoms continues to be the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year honors. Sessoms, a seven-time Rookie of the Week selection, ranks third in the America East in scoring (18.1 ppg.) and fifth in assists (3.5/game). He has the second-highest scoring average in BU's 18-year Division I tenure.

Seniors Caleb Stewart (11.5 ppg., 7.2 rpg.) and J.C. Show (11.3 ppg., 80 3-pointers) are also all-conference candidates after prominent spots in the league's statistical top-10.  

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 finished seventh and returns to postseason after missing out last year
•    BU is 7-12 all-time in the America East tournament and has lost its last six games, including quarterfinal losses to Stony Brook in 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2017     

Last time out
•    Albany began the second half with a 14-0 run and BU couldn't recover in a 73-58 loss Tuesday at the Events Center
•    Senior forward Chancellor Barnard hit 7-of-8 for 15 points and added seven boards and three blocks
•    But rest of BU's lineup shot 31% and Albany shot 56% in 2nd half to pull away       

About Stony Brook
•    Currently RV in the Mid-Major Top 25
•    Went 12-4 in AE with only losses coming to Vermont (2x), UMBC and Albany
•    Coming off a 68-63 come-from-behind win at Hartford on Tuesday
•    In that game, senior guard Jaron Cornish scored a team-high 16 points
•    Posted 12 road wins this winter — most of any team in nation

All-time series vs. Stony Brook
•    Stony Brook leads the series, which began in 1963, 44-27
•    Stony Brook swept the season series, winning 59-46 at home and 85-59 at the Events Center one month later, and has won 19 of the last 21 head-to-head
•    In the last matchup on Feb. 6 in Vestal, the Seawolves put four players in double figures and pulled down 51 rebounds in an 85-59 win. The Seawolves hit 13-of-25 from 3-point range and after building a 14-point halftime cushion, let BU no closer than seven in the second half. 
•    The home team has won seven of the last eight matchups
•    BU is just 7-25 all-time at Stony Brook

Bearcats back in postseason after one-year hiatus
Binghamton is back into the America East tournament after missing last season. The Bearcats are looking to snap a six-game losing streak in the tournament. The team's last win was a first-round (#8 vs #9) win over UMBC in the 2012 tourney. The last time BU advanced to the semifinals was during its championship run in 2009. The team also reached the semifinals in 2005 and 2006. Binghamton's postseason record against Stony Brook is 0-4, having lost most recently in the 2017 quarterfinals, 70-60, on Long Island. 

Sessoms still fifth in nation in freshman scoring, sets records
Freshman guard Sam Sessoms is fifth in the entire nation in freshman scoring and fourth in the nation among players 6-feet or shorter.     

Show drains school-record 10 3-pointers, continues torrid streak
Senior guard J.C. Show had another memorable performance in his storied collegiate career March 2 at Maine. He poured in a school-record 10 3-pointers (10-for-14) and 30 points to key BU's 83-60 win. Only four players around the country have gone for more "threes" in a game this season. It was his 13th 20+ point game and second 30+ game in 2+ years at Binghamton. He went 7-for-7 from 3-point range in the second half to break the record for 3s in a game (8) he previously shared with teammate Sam Sessoms and two others. In his last six games, Show is averaging 18.5 points. Show has 937 points in a BU uniform, which ranks fifth all-time. He has 1,173 total collegiate points (236 for Bucknell as freshman).   

Stewart piling up stats, records fourth double-double in win at Maine
When the calendar year turned to 2019, senior forward Caleb Stewart stepped up his production. In his last 18 games, Stewart is averaging 14.2 points. In conference play, Stewart ranks third in rebounds (8.0), fifth in blocks (1.1) and ninth in scoring (14.3). On March 2 at Maine, Stewart notched his fourth double-double of the season with 23 points and 10 rebounds. 

BU records program-record 19 3-pointers, wins third straight road game
The Bearcats broke an eight-year-old school record with 19 3-pointers the win at Maine on March 2. The previous record was 17, set in a first-round tournament win over UMBC on March 3, 2011 (at Hartford). At Maine, BU made eight treys in the first half and 11 in the second half. Five different players converted, led by senior guard J.C. Show, who set an individual record with 10. Senior forward Caleb Stewart made four and freshman guard Sam Sessoms added three.

Sessoms' record-tying performance not enough to beat Hartford
Freshman guard Sam Sessoms exploded for 34 points (8-of-15 3-pt. FG), including 24 in the second half, in the 96-76 loss to Hartford on Wednesday. Sessoms tied school records for points in a game and 3-pointers in a game — both of which are held by teammate J.C. Show. His 24 points in a half are second-most in program history (Dusan Perovic scored 29 points in the second half en route to 34 points at Boston Univ. on Dec. 3, 2014). Sessoms has two of the top eight scoring performances in the America East this season, having also netted 32 points against UMass Lowell on Jan. 23.

Sessoms claims seventh Rookie of Week honor in final week
Freshman guard Sam Sessoms was named America East Rookie of the Week seven times this season (Nov. 12, Nov. 26, Dec. 10, Dec. 24, Jan. 7, Feb. 11, March 4). Only two America East players in the league's 40-year history have received more rookie honors. In BU's 18-year membership in the AE, only one freshman has held down a higher scoring average (Albany's Jamar Wilson, 18.9 ppg. in 2002-03).    

Bearcats lead America East, rank 19th in nation in blocks
Despite opening the season without the top shot blocker in the America East (Thomas Bruce), BU has racked up 137 blocks through 30 games, tops in the AE and 19th-most in the country. In blocks per game, BU led the country for a week and currently ranks 33rd (4.6/game). Individually, senior forward Caleb Stewart swatted a career-high five vs. Columbia and has 52 blocks, which ranks third in the conference and 62nd in the country. His 1.73 average is 78th. Senior forward Chancellor Barnard had a career-high seven-block showing (all in second half) against UMass Lowell on Jan. 23 and has 44 blocks (4th in AE). 

10-year anniversary of program's first NCAA berth 
The 2018-19 season marks the 10-year anniversary of the program's first NCAA tournament berth. That 2008-09 team went 23-9 (13-3 in America East) and captured the America East regular season and tournament titles. The Bearcats then received a No. 15 seed and faced No. 2 seed Duke in an opening round game in front of 20,001 at the Greensboro Coliseum on March 19, 2009. In a game shown to a national audience in primetime on CBS, Duke stretched an 11-point halftime lead and prevailed 86-62. The Bearcats shot 53 percent to Duke's 49 percent but were whistled for 21 fouls, including six in the game's first three minutes. The ACC champion Blue Devils went on to reach the Sweet 16.