VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton men's basketball (9-17, 3-10 America East) looks to continue its push for a postseason berth when the Bearcats welcome fourth-place Hartford (14-14, 7-6 AE) for a 4 p.m. game Saturday at the Events Center. It will be the final regular season home game for BU, which trails Maine by a half-game for the final playoff spot with three games remaining. 

Binghamton will have two pregame ceremonies - one honoring sophomore guard Sam Sessoms for reaching the 1,000-point mark - and the other the annual Senior Ceremony where BU will recognize student managers Jesse Parsons and Roberto Jensen plus players Richard Caldwell, Jr. and Pierre Sarr.

Then BU will set its sights on earning a season split with the Hawks and strengthening its playoff position. 

Last time out
•    On Thursday, Sam Sessoms poured in 39 points to lift the Bearcats to an 86-84 win over visiting UMass Lowell. It was the most individual points scored in a regulation game in the school's 19-year Division I history (Sessoms had 40 in an OT win)
•    Sessoms scored 27 points in the second half and hit the go-ahead fadeaway jumper with 20 seconds left to snap an 80-80 tie. BU then made 4-of-6 free throws in the final 11 seconds to hold off the River Hawks.
•    Freshman forward George Tinsley had 15 points and senior forward Pierre Sarr had eight points and eight rebounds in just 23 minutes, duue to foul trouble               

About Hartford
•    Graduate transfer Malik Ellison notched his league-high ninth double-double with 28 points and 13 rebounds but the Hawks came up short in a see-saw 67-63 overtime game at New Hampshire on Thursday
•    Senior Traci Carter also had a double-double with 19 points and 10 boards
•    Have lost four of their last five games, including a setback to UMass Lowell
•    Ellison leads Hartford in both scoring (18.4 ppg.) and rebounding (10.5 rpg.)
•    Ellison, son of former Louisville great and NBA player Pervis Ellison, previously played two years at St. John's before captaining the Pitt team last year
•    Team ranks eighth in the AE in offense (65.8 ppg.) and fifth in defense (66.8)
 
All-time series vs. Hartford
•    Hartford has rattled off six straight wins and has won 16 of the last 18 to stretch its lead in the all-time series to 26-13
•    The Hawks hold an 11-7 lead in games in Vestal
•    On Jan. 29 in West Hartford, Hartford used a 10-0 run midway through the second half to gain separation and the Hawks made 11-for-12 free throws in the final 2:42 to hold off Binghamton 73-57 at Chase Arena. The loss overshadowed a superb performance from freshman forward George Tinsley, who tallied a career- and game-high 25 points.
•    The last BU win in the series came three years ago at home —  76-55 win on Jan. 25, 2017

Sessoms explodes for 39 points, sets regulation game scoring record  
Sophomore guard Sam Sessoms pumped in 39 points in the win over UMass Lowell on Thursday. In the process, he broke the single-game (regulation) scoring mark he shared with two other players at 34 points. Sessoms made 13-of-19 shots (9-of-11 in second half) and scored four points in the final 20 seconds to seal the win. Sessoms now has the record for points in a game (40 in OT win over Boston Univ. on Dec. 7, 2019) and regulation game (39). He has scored 30 or more points five times, including twice this season.
   
Sessoms eclipses 1,000 career points in just 57 games  
Sophomore guard Sam Sessoms scored 22 points on Feb. 12 against Stony Brook to eclipse the 1,000-point scoring mark in his 57th collegiate game. In the process, he became just the seventh player in the league's 41-year history to reach the 1K mark as a sophomore. Sessoms currently ranks fourth in Div. I era scoring at Binghamton and his career average (18.1 ppg.) puts him in pace to become the program's all-time scoring leader (1,705 pts.) by the end of his junior season. Sessoms is also on pace to surpass the 2,000-point mark by the time he graduates, which would make him a 2K scorer in both high school and college.  

Tinsley has scored in double digits eight straight games, making strong case for Rookie of Year 
Freshman forward George Tinsley has been on a scoring tear of late. He has produced double-digit points in eight consecutive games and is averaging 14.6 points in that stretch. His 11.8 season scoring average is No. 1 among conference freshmen. 

Hjalmarsson featured in AP article about NCAA players from Iceland  
Freshman guard Hakon Hjalmarsson was recently featured in an Associated Press article about the three basketball players from Iceland who are currently playing at Division I (Thorir Thorbjarnarson of Nebraska and Jon Axel Gudmundsson of Davidson). Hjalmarsson scored 12 points in the Feb. 8 game against Maine and is averaging 19 minutes per game. The article link is https://apnews.com/e6e70497dcdecde407e19f0eb7c719ee?utm_medium=AP_Sports&utm_source=Twitter&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_medium=AP_Top25&utm_source=Twitter 

Young BU lineup is delivering  
Binghamton is receiving 74% of its offense from underclassmen and its top three scorers are all first or second-year guys. 

70 is magic number on offense   
The Bearcats can eye the number 70 on the scoreboard. When BU puts 70 on the board they are 9-3. When the Bearcats score less than 70, they are 0-14.

Bearcats one of youngest teams in nation
Binghamton now is ranked No. 335 in experience (19th youngest team in nation) by KenPom. The team's most common starting lineup shows two freshmen (Mills, Tinsley), a sophomore (Sessoms) and two seniors (Sarr and Caldwell). 

Bearcats riding 3-point scoring, rank fifth in country in long distance reliance  
BU ranks 21sst in the country in 3-pointers per game (9.6) and 25th in made 3-pointers (249). They have canned 10 or more 3s 12 times this season, including a season-best 15 against Maine on Feb. 8. In the win over UMass Lowell on Thursday, BU hit 11-of-19 attempts (58%). The Bearcats rank No. 5 in the country in 3-point reliance (Ken Pom), with 42% of their offense coming via the 3-ball. 

Bearacts among the America East, NCAA stat leaders  
Sophomore guard Sam Sessoms leads the America East in assists (4.8/game) and is third in scoring (18.4). He also ranks third in minutes (35.4), fourth in steals (1.6) and fifth in both 3-pointers per game (2.1) and free throw percentage (81%). Freshman forward George Tinsley ranks first in the nation in minutes (38:23/game). Tinsley is third in the America East in rebounding (7.5), sixth in blocks (1.1/game) and is the top-scoring freshman in the conference (11.8 ppg.). Senior forward Pierre Sarr is fourth in the AE in rebounding (7.3). v
 
Sarr selected to Midseason Watch List for Dos Equis 3x3U event
Senior forward Pierre Sarr has been selected as one of 10 seniors from the America East on the Dos Equis 3x3U National Championship Midseason Watch List. The event pits seniors representing all 32 NCAA Division I conferences in a FIBA-sanctioned 3-on-3 event that carries a grand prize of $150,000. This year's event will take place April 3-5 in Atlanta. Last year a squad from the mid-major Colonial Athletic Association won the event.   

Tinsley leads nation in minutes played  
Freshman forward George Tinsley is back atop the nation in minutes played. He has logged an average of 38:23 minutes. Tinsley has played a full game nine times this season, including all 45 minutes in the overtime win over Boston University on Dec. 7.