VESTAL, N.Y. - On the heels of another big road win, Binghamton men's basketball returns home for its final regular season game at the Events Center when the Bearcats (11-13, 8-7 America East) host Vermont (22-5, 14-1 AE) at 7 p.m. Wednesday. It's a matchup of No. 1 and No. 2 in the standings and a second shot for BU against a league-leading Catamounts team that has been dominant in conference play.

Before the game, BU will honor its five seniors: Ogheneyole Akuwovo, Tyler Bertram, Alex Brodsky, Christian Hinckson and Yarden Willis. 

With three regular season games remaining, the Bearcats are in a three-way tie for second place but because of the unprecedented congestion, there is just one game separating second place from sixth place in the standings. Binghamton plays its final two games on the road before the America East quarterfinals take place on March 6.

Junior guard Jacob Falko (13.1 ppg.) and sophomore guard John McGriff (10.9) lead a balanced roster that has six players averaging 7.0 or more points. Junior forward Christian Hinckson leads the team in rebounding (6.1/game) and junior guard Dan Petcash is shooting a team-high 52 percent from 3-point range.        

About Binghamton
• Coming off 78-64 road win at UMass Lowell on Saturday to sweep series
• Sophomore point guard John McGriff scored a career-high 21 points
• BU set a school record by shooting 79% in second half (19-of-24)
• Junior Dan Petcash (19 pts.) hit 8-of-10 shots, including 3-of-3 from 3-pt. •
• Sophomore Kellen Amos added 12 points, six boards and two steals in 23 min.
• Improved to 5-2 in conference road games

About Vermont
• League-leader has already clinched sixth straight regular season title
• Coming off 86-59 home win over UMBC on Saturday
• Are outscoring AE foes by more than 17 points per game
• Shooting 55% in AE play - 10 percentage points higher than anyone else
• Had longest win streak in nation (14) before losing at Hartford 75-74 Feb. 14
• Catamounts have won three of the last five AE titles and eight overall
• Program is 82-10 against AE opponents in last six years
• Ranked #61 in NCAA Net and received a vote in this week's AP Top 25
• Boast reigning Player of Year (Ryan Davis, 17.4 ppg.) and second team all-conference selection Ben Shungu (16.0 ppg.)

All-time series vs. Vermont
• Vermont holds a commanding 38-8 lead in the series — the most lopsided among all BU's America East opponents
• Vermont has won 14 straight in the series, including an 82-51 win in Burlington two weeks ago (Feb. 9)
• Vermont leads 18-6 in games in Vestal
• Binghamton's last win was 57-55 at Events Center on Feb. 18, 2015 (7 yrs.) when BU reversed an earlier 20-point loss in Burlington and rallied from 10 points down in the second half. Then freshman Willie Rodriguez had 18 points
• BU has lost the last six to Vermont by an average of 30 points
• BU has been within 14 points just once in the last 13 matchups (a 69-63 loss at Events Center on Feb. 23, 2019)

Bearcats set record with second-half shooting at UMass Lowell
Nursing a two-point halftime lead Saturday at Lowell, BU embarked on a near-perfect second half, hitting 19-of-24 shots and putting up 44 points to pull away for the 78-64 win. By missing just five shots, the Bearcats set the school record for field goal percentage in a half (79.2%). The old mark was 74%, set in the first half against Northeastern on Jan. 21, 2004.  

McGriff tallies career-high 21 points, keys road win at Lowell
Sophomore guard John McGriff hit 9-of-14 FG for a career-high 21 points in Saturday's road win at UMass Lowell. McGriff scored 15 of those points (6-of-7 FG) in the decisive second half. He is averaging 15.0 ppg. in his last 3 games.  

Sanders named permanent head coach
Levell Sanders was rewarded for the team's quick turnaround this season with a five-year coaching contract, announced on Feb. 17. His team has earned the most conference wins in 12 seasons and is in the thick of the playoff battle for a top-4 seed. Sanders was named interim coach last March after serving two years as an assistant. He will be BU's HC through at least the 2026-27 season.

Bearcats are cranking out 20-point performances
With John McGriff's 21-point performance against UMass Lowell on Wednesday, Binghamton now has had 13 instances of a 20+ point performance through its first 24 games. A league-best six different players have reached the plateau, led by junior guard Jacob Falko, who has six, most in the AE. Junior guard Tyler Bertram has done it three times and the others to reach 20 or more points in a game are Kellen Amos, Christian Hinckson and Dan Petcash.

Road Warriors
The Bearcats are 5-2 in conference road games, compared with a 3-5 mark at home. On the road, the team is scoring 4.1 more points (70.7) and shooting 46%, compared to 44% at home. First halves at home have been the team's Achilles' heel. They are averaging just 31 points in the first half of Events Center games, compared to 36 points in the second half. The team's top two scorers have each been significantly more accurate on the road. Jacob Falko is shooting 11 points higher away from home (55%) and John McGriff checks in 16 points higher (50%). 

Logjam in middle of standings
With three games remaining in the regular season for Binghamton, there is unprecedented congestion in the middle of the standings. five teams are separated by just one loss in the standings. The teams are all eying a top-4 finish that guarantees at least one home playoff game.  

First to 70 wins
When BU scores 70 or more points (in regulation), they are 8-1 this season. When opponents reach 70, BU is 1-8.

Need to reverse Hump Day struggles
The Bearcats are 1-7 in Wednesday games this season, with the lone win coming at Stony Brook on Feb. 2.  

Amos double-digits leads to wins
Sophomore guard Kellen Amos contributed 12 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals in Saturday's win at Lowell. It was the sixth time this season he has reached double-digit points, and the Bearcats are 5-1 in those games.  

Another Petcash late-season surge?
Junior guard Dan Petcash hit 8-of-10 shots for 19 points in Saturday's win at Lowell. Three days earlier, he hit 4-of-5 shots (10 pts.) against Albany. His two-game averages are 14.5 points on 80% shooting (12-of-15). The back-to-back double-digit point totals were the first of the season for Petcash, who has battled through two injuries this season. He is shooting 52% from 3-point range this season (16-of-31). He finished strong last season as well, with four straight twin-digit games and an America East Player of the Week honor to end the regular season.

Fans are flocking back to Events Center
With the team's resurgence, BU fans have returned to the Events Center. The home attendance figures have increased in six straight games, capped with a season-best 3,835 total for the Albany game on Feb. 16. Binghamton ranks second in the America East in average attendance (2,044), behind only Vermont (2,133). Binghamton led the league in attendance nine straight years between 2003-11.      

Falko making case for all-conference  
Junior guard Jacob Falko has the most 20+ point games (6) in the conference and against league opponents, ranks fifth in scoring (16.4), third in assists (3.9) and eighth in field goal percentage (50%). He has scored in double figures in six of the last seven games and was the America East Player of the Week on Feb. 7 after averaging 23.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in a 2-0 week.

Tinsley closing in on exclusive 600-point, 400-rebound club
Junior forward George Tinsley continued his resurgence with 24 strong minutes off the bench against Maine on Feb. 5. Tinsley hit 6-of-7 shots (3-of-3 3-pt.) for a season-high 17 points. He added five rebounds to reach the 400-board mark for his career, which ranks eighth all-time at Binghamton. He now is eight points away from reaching the 600-point plateau (592). Only six previous Bearcats have achieved the 600-point, 400-rebound milestones in BU's 21 years of Division I (Willie Rodriguez, Jordan Reed, Nick Billings, Thomas Bruce, Sebastian Hermenier, Bobby Ahearn).  

Hinckson filling up stat sheet
Junior forward Christian Hinckson has become a steady contributor across the stat sheet. In 15 conference games, Hinckson is averaging 9.3 points and 7.1 rebounds. He has produced three double-doubles and notched a career-high 20 points in the Jan. 24 win over Hartford. Hinckson ranks second in the America East in rebounds and is fifth in blocks (1.1/game). He is shooting 50 percent in league play and 45 percent from beyond the arc (17-of-38). Hinckson leads the team in blocks and is second in steals (21).  

Bearcats Among Stat Leaders
In conference play, BU ranks among the league's top-3 in a handful of categories. Binghamton leads the league in rebounds (36.0/game) and FG% defense (42%). They are second in scoring margin (+0.9), 3-point defense (34%) and blocks (3.7/game) and third in scoring defense (67.7), field goal percentage (45%) and assists (11.8/game).