VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton men's basketball will bring an ideal combination of health and momentum into its 2021 postseason. The Bearcats, winners of three of four to close the regular season, head to Hartford to face the No. 4 Hawks at 2 p.m. Saturday in Chase Arena. Hartford is hosting the two-day pod, with No. 5 Albany and No. 8 NJIT meeting in Saturday's other first-round game. The two winners advance to a quarterfinal tilt at 3 p.m. Sunday at Chase.  

QUICK HITS
•    This is Binghamton's 75th season of basketball, 20th at the Division I level
•    Bearcats return to the conference tournament two years after they stunned No. 2 seed Stony Brook in the 2019 quarterfinals (BU missed postseason last year)
•    Bearcats have won three of last four entering tournament and because of a 19-day COVID pause, are unbeaten in the month of February (2-0!!)
•    BU is coming off a two-game road sweep of NJIT

About Hartford
•    Have been idle for two weeks since splitting a series vs. NJIT on Feb. 13-14
•    Split their last four series' after sweeping Bearcats in early January
•    Rank ninth in AE in offense (64.2 ppg.) but second in defense (63.3 pts. allowed)
•    Backcourt of Traci Carter (2nd) and Austin Williams (3rd) named all-conference
•    Picked to place sixth in preseason poll and exceeded that with fourth place finish
      
 All-time series vs. Hartford
•    Hartford leads the all-time series, which began in 2002, 29-13
•    The Hawks have won nine straight and 19 of the last 21 head-to-head
•    Hartford swept season series Jan. 2-3 at Chase, winning 76-56 and 77-74
•    The Hawks are 16-5 all-time at home in the series and the last time BU won at Chase Arena was in the 2015-16 season (68-54 on Feb. 11, 2016)
•    This is the third postseason meeting between the two teams. Previously the teams split quarterfinal matchups with BU winning 73-65 at a neutral site (Albany) en route to the program's 2009 championship and first NCAA berth. Hartford returned the favor in 2014 with a 69-42 win on its home court. 
  
Last Time Out
After enduring a 19-day layoff, despite a limited available lineup (post COVID) and without leading scorer Brenton Mills, BU swept NJIT in its final regular season series last weekend. The Bearcats won by double figures both days, 76-63 and 72-58, holding the Highlanders to 35% shooting (19% from 3-pt. range) for the two-game set. America East Player of the Week Dan Petcash led BU with 15.0 ppg. (58% FG)and 5.0 rpg. on the weekend.      

Peaking at Right Time
After struggling through six straight January losses, BU closed the regular season by winning three of four, with the lone loss coming in overtime. A series split with No. 3 seed New Hampshire and a road sweep at No. 8 NJIT brings BU into the postseason with momentum and a healthy lineup. It's expected to be the first time since Dec. 13 that all-conference guard Brenton Mills and standout senior center Thomas Bruce are side-by-side in the starting lineup.  

Which Game Will We See?
Including the pair of games at Chase Arena this year, Hartford has won nine straight in the series and the average margin of victory is 15 points, including four games that were decided by 20 or more. But two of the last three were decided by three or fewer points, including the 77-74 Hawks win in the last meeting on Jan. 3. After a 76-56 loss the day before, the Bearcats shot a season-high 59 percent from the field but Hartford stuck a 3-pointer at the buzzer for the win. Binghamton led by as many as 14 points thanks to a stunning 71 percent shooting accuracy in the first half and appeared to tally the winning points in the closing seconds before a Dan Petcash bucket was waived off with an offensive foul call. Of note was that BU played the series without senior center Thomas Bruce, whose impact on the lineup is noted below.  

Mills Only Underclassman on All-Conference Team
Sophomore guard and BU leading scorer Brenton Mills earned third team all-conference honors this season. He was the lone underclassmen selected on the 15-player teams. Mills ranks fourth in the America East in scoring (14.6 ppg.) and is second in 3-point shooting (41%). In 14 starts this season (excluding a 23-minute return-from-injury game), he has bumped that scoring average up to 15.3 ppg. Mills opened the season with a 20-point performance against Marist and has added two more 20+ games since, including a season-high 22 points against regular season co-champion UMBC in December. He is shooting 42% from the field and 74% from the free throw line. Last season, he was an America East All-Rookie selection after averaging 9.7 points. 

The Bruce Factor
Senior center Thomas Bruce has been limited to eight games this season after missing more than a month with concussion symptoms. When in the lineup, the two-time America East All-Defensive Team selection makes a notable impact. Opponents are averaging 12.4 fewer points when Bruce is protecting the rim. Without him in the lineup, BU foes are shooting 53% inside the arc but with him, that average drops to 45%. The difference on the glass is a net 6.7 rebounds per game. With Bruce, BU is plus 4.2 on the glass.  

Tightening the Defense
After allowing opponents an average of 76.1 points in the team's first 13 games, BU has clamped down on defense in its last four games (3-1). Opponents are averaging just 55.3 points in regulation time, a reduction of 20.8 points (27%). In the series at NJIT, BU used a mix of zones and man-to-man defense and limited the Highlanders to 35% shooting (20% from 3-pt.). 

Better on the Road
The Bearcats have the greatest discrepancy between home and away records in the conference ... at it FAVORS the road record. Binghamton closed out its home slate with a 1-9 mark but is 3-4 on the road, including a win at No. 1 seed UMBC, who BU would face in the semifinals if it advances through the Hartford pod this weekend.     

Sophomore class carrying Bearcats
Binghamton is led by its core of eight sophomores. The group, led by Brenton Mills (14.6 ppg.) and Tyler Bertram (10.6 ppg.), accounts for 85% of the team's scoring (955 of 1118 pts.) and 83% of the team's total minutes (2878 of 3475 team minutes). 

Sizzling first half at Hartford
On Jan. 3 at Hartford, BU made its first 10 shots, didn't miss a shot for the first 8:13 of the game, hit 15-of-18 to start and wound up shooting 71% for the half (17-of-24 FG). It was the highest percentage for a half (vs. a D-I opponent) since BU shot 74% in the first half vs. Northeastern on Jan. 21, 2004 (17 years ago). Binghamton's game shooting percentage of 59% (29-of-49) was the program's highest in four years (61% vs. Delaware St. on Dec. 17, 2016).
    
3-Ball Focus 
The Bearcats are averaging a conference-best 8.8 3-pointers per game, which ranks 51st in the country. They take an average of 26 long-range shots per game — six more than their opponents. Binghamton also is 14th in the country in 3-point reliance, with 40% of their team points coming via the 3-ball.