VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton men's basketball makes its second straight appearance in the America East semifinals when fifth-seeded BU (13-17) faces top-seeded Vermont (21-10) at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Patrick Gym. The winner meets the winner of the UMass Lowell-UNH semifinal in Saturday's championship game with an NCAA berth on the line. 

The Bearcats advanced with a 67-65 road win over fourth-seeded UMBC on Saturday. It marked the second straight year that BU upended a higher seed in the quarterfinals. Now it brings the challenge of a third matchup this season against the league's preeminent program in Vermont.    

QUICK HITS
• This is Binghamton's 77th season of basketball, 22nd in D-I and the America East
• BU is making its 17th America East playoff appearance in 22 years of membership
• BU has reached the semis in three of its last four tourney appearances (2019, 2022, 2023), joining UMBC and Vermont as the only current AE teams to do so
• The Bearcats were picked to finish fourth and matched that (T-4, #5 seed)
• BU has knocked off a higher seed on the road in each of the last two years (#3 UNH last season). No other AE team has done it once.
• BU's final AE win percentage (8-8, .500) is the best of any Bearcat team in 13 years (2009-10 team went 8-8)
• The final place (T-4th) is the highest in 14 years (2008-09 team went 13-3, T-1st)
• BU will face Vermont in the semifinals for the second straight year and seventh time overall in the tournament (0-6)
• BU's projected starting lineup has played a total of 486 D-1 college games (avg. 97)  
• BU has the third-oldest roster in the country with an average age of 22.0 years
• BU has scored exactly 67 points in each of its last three games (1-2) and now four times this season, tying it with 70 for the the team's most common final point total

About Binghamton
• Advanced with a gritty 67-65 road win at No. 4 UMBC on Saturday
• Game start was delayed six hours due to a local power outage
• BU shot 55% in second half and made 4-of-4 FT in final 18 seconds
• Jacob Falko and Dan Petcash sank two free throws apiece in the last 18 seconds and Armon Harried secured the final FT rebound to seal it
• Falko scored 12 of his 16 points in the second half
• The second half featured six ties and five lead changes
• Miles Gibson contributed 13 points and eight rebounds, and Petcash and graduate forward Christian Hinckson tallied 11 points apiece

About Vermont
• League's premier program with seven consecutive regular season titles and nine overall — most in league history
• Went 14-2 in regular season and are 100-12 in last 7 years of AE play
• Coming off 84-57 quarterfinal win over #8 NJIT on Saturday
• Riding 13-game win streak — third-longest current streak in country
• Have AE Player of Year (Sullivan) and three all-conference selections
• Have won 20 or more games 14 consecutive full years (joining Kansas and Gonzaga as only NCAA programs to do so)
• UVM is 90-12 against AE opponents in last seven years (reg. season)
• Have won last four home playoff games by an average of 34+ points

All-time series vs. Vermont
• Vermont holds a commanding 42-8 lead in the series — the most lopsided among all BU's America East opponents
• Vermont has won 18 straight in the series, including three wins last season and two this season (80-55 and 81-70)
• In its 81-70 win two weeks ago (Feb. 22) at Patrick Gym, Vermont made eight free throws in the final 1:14 to hold off the Bearcats. BU led 51-46 after a 3-pointer by Miles Gibson (season-high 23 pts.) with 12:09 left. The teams traded big shots for a few minutes and Jacob Falko gave the Bearcats their final lead, 54-53, with a 3-pointer with 8:55 left. Vermont countered, however, with a 19-5 run that gave them a 65-56 edge with 4:57 left. BU brought it back to six points but couldn't draw closer.
• BU's last win was 57-55 at Events Center on Feb. 18, 2015 (8 yrs.)
• In Burlington, BU is 2-21 all-time and has lost 15 straight (by avg. of 23 ppg.) and last 13 have all been by double figures
• BU's last win at Patrick was a classic, however. BU's 2008-09 NCAA team overcame a 25-point second-half deficit to stun the home crowd and win 85-83 on Feb. 4, 2009. It's the eighth-greatest road comeback in NCAA history.
 
A win over Vermont would ...
• Be considered one of the biggest wins in program history and one of the most eye-catching upsets around the country
• Advance BU to the AE championship game for the first time since hosting and winning the 2009 title game (14 years)
• Snap an 18-game losing streak to the Catamounts
• Snap UVM's 13-game win streak — third-longest in country
• Make BU the lowest seed to beat UVM on its home floor in playoffs
• Make BU just the third team to beat UVM on its home floor in the AE tourney since 2015 (Hartford in 2021). UVM is 16-2 in last 8 yrs at home.

BU snaps four-game losing skid with steady quarterfinal showing
After finishing the regular season with four straight losses, including back-to-back overtime home setbacks that sent BU spiraling downward from second to fifth in the standings — BU needed a 40-minute performance to win on the road. And Saturday in Baltimore, the Bearcats did just that, grinding out a two-point win over No. 4 UMBC. Unlike the previous two games where late opportunities to close out a win escaped them, in this game the Bearcats finished strong with a high-quality second half and timely execution in the closing minutes. BU shot 55% in the second half, hit 4-of-6 from 3-point range and sealed the win with 4-for-4 free throw shooting in the closing 18 seconds. A strong boxout and rebound with 2.2 seconds left denied the host Retrievers a final look.

Power outage makes for long, one-of-a-kind day Saturday
The Bearcats got to Chesapeake Arena around 11:20 a.m. on Saturday and took the floor for warm-ups. As players from both teams casually put up shots, however, power cut off around 11:40 a.m., sending the arena into darkness, save for sunlight coming through the upper level windows. Despite numerous projections for the return of power in the afternoon, the building didn't light up until 5:35 p.m. — almost six hours later. The Bearcats spent time lounging in their locker room, sat on the bus to charge up phones and laptops, soaked up some rare sunshine, and watched the other tournament games. Both BU and UMBC had catered meals delivered to the upper suite level of the Arena around 4 p.m. With a self-proposed 5:30 p.m. deadline already missed to announce and warm up for a 7 p.m. start, conference and team officials began discussing a plan to push the game to Sunday. But without notice, yet met with cheering fanfare, the Arena lights popped on. Sixty minutes were put on the clock and a 7:02 tip-off and ESPN+ broadcast got underway. The six-hour delay greatly affected the crowd, which dwindled down to 1,705 in the 4,600+ capacity building. The original cause of the power outage? High winds bringing down a tree onto power lines in the local vicinity of campus.      

Bearcats are No. 5 seed
After a tense final night of the regular season last Tuesday, where three games went to the closing moments and BU/UMBC went to overtime, the Bearcats emerged with the No. 5 tournament seed. BU could've been anywhere from 3-6 but landed on #5 and have that seed for the fifth time (it's BU's most common seed in its 22-year AE history). After Saturday's win at UMBC, BU is 2-4 all-time with the No. 5 seed with both wins coming in the quarterfinals.    

Third time's a charm? Again?
After reversing its fortunes against UMBC in the quarters (after being swept in the regular season) Binghamton will encounter the same scenario against Vermont. The Bearcats dropped both games to the Catamounts this season but did play UVM close in an 11-point loss in Burlington two weeks ago. Binghamton achieved the same reversal last March when it toppled No. 3 UNH in a road quarterfinal after the Wildcats had swept the season series.        

Trending on 67
Binghamton has scored exactly 67 points in each of its last three games — the first time in 77 years of basketball BU has had the same score in three straight games. After going to overtime in back-to-back 67-point losses, the Bearcats got a win out of their 67 points on Saturday. Binghamton also scored 67 in a non-conference loss at Niagara in December so that score is tied for the team's most common this year (four times). Before the current 67-point "streak" BU went for 70 in back-to-back games (both losses). They have also scored 70 four times and all four have resulted in losses.  

Vermont remains big hurdle
With BU's win over UMBC, the list of America East teams the Bearcats haven't beaten this year is trimmed to two: Maine and Vermont. Binghamton is a combined 3-1 against the two possible America East championship game opponents (UMass Lowell and UNH). But getting past Vermont remains a quest going on eight years now (14 years in road games). In fact, playing the Catamounts to single digits in Burlington hasn't happened in 12 years.    

Falko named all-conference, Harried all-defensive and Petcash all-academic
Three Bearcats earned honors from the conference this week. Senior guard Jacob Falko was selected to the all-conference second team — giving him back-to-back all-conference honors in his two years at Binghamton. Junior forward Armon Harried earned All-Defensive Team recognition and senior guard Dan Petcash was on the All-Academic Team. Falko (13.7 ppg.) becomes just the sixth Bearcat to become a two-time all-conference selection. Harried, who leads the team in rebounds (6.3) and blocks (0.8) and is second in scoring (12.3) gives BU an all-defensive pick for the second straight year (Christian Hinckson last season). Petcash has a 3.56 GPA in psychology and is BU's first all-academic selection since J.C. Show went back-to-back in 2017-18 and 2018-19.  

Teams are protecting home court this year
Moreso than any recent year, America East teams are protecting their home courts in conference this season. In Saturday's quarterfinals, home teams went 3-1 with BU pulling off the lone lower seed upset. For the AE season, the top six teams in the standings were a combined 39-10 at home (80%). Since 2015, America East tournament home teams are 43-9 (83%). Vermont is 11-1 at home this season, including a 9-0 mark against AE opponents. The Bearcats are 5-10 on the road this season (4-5 vs. AE) and are 3-7 in all-time tournament road games.

Bearcats have won three straight quarterfinal games — all on road
Binghamton has won three consecutive quarterfinal games — each an upset on the road over a top-4 seed. In 2019, No. 7 BU went to Long Island and stunned No. 2 Stony Brook 78-72 in the quarters. Last March, No. 6 BU went to Durham and eliminated No. 3 UNH 72-69. And on Saturday No. 5 prevailed over No. 4 UMBC 67-65.    
Binghamton tops in attendance during conference play, falls just short of home playoff game  

Boosted by a season-high 3,678 last Saturday for the Maine game, the Bearcats drew a league-leading average of 2,635 in conference play this winter. That's nearly 300 per game higher than Vermont (2,398) and nearly 1,000 more per game than any of the remaining America East teams. Binghamton drew 3,500+ three times in the last six home games. The 2,635 figure is 612 more per game than last year (30% increase). The team averaged 2,110 in 15 home games this season but fell just short of earning a home playoff game to reap the advantage of the loyal fan base, finishing one game behind UNH for the No. 4 spot. The Bearcats haven't had a home playoff game since winning the 2009 title before a SRO crowd of 5,342 at the Events Center.  

Falko eclipses 1,000-point scoring mark
Senior guard Jacob Falko netted a game-high 19 points against UMBC on last Tuesday to eclipse the 1,000-point scoring plateau. He scored 12 of those points after halftime and reached the 1K mark with his dramatic floater in the lane with 23 seconds left in regulation — a bucket that gave BU a 62-59 lead. He added two free throws in overtime and brings 1,002 points (3 NCAA seasons) into the postseason. Falko also scored 1,143 points in his first two collegiate seasons of junior college play (Cecil College, Md.).  

Petcash tops America East in 3-point shooting during conference play
Senior guard Dan Petcash wrapped up his final conference season with high shooting averages. In 16 conference games, Petcash led the league in 3-point shooting (35-for-75, 47%) and was sixth in overall field goal percentage (51%). He also is BU's top free throw shooter (34-for-39 on season, 87%). In his last seven games, Petcash is averaging 13.1 points, has logged an average of 35 minutes and typically guards the opponents' top player. Petcash currently is the school's all-time 3-point percentage leader. In his four years, he has hit 100-of-248 for a .403 accuracy. J.C. Show finished his BU career at .363 (186-for-512).  

Bearcat veterans padding career points totals
Consistent with a veteran team, BU has five players with 600 or more NCAA career points and three with 700 or more. Jacob Falko (1,018) just went over the 1,000-point NCAA plateau last Tuesday against UMBC. Armon Harried (951) is within 49 points of the 1K mark. Miles Gibson (819) is over the 800-point mark as is Christian Hinckson (803). Dan Petcash (653) is the other Bearcat to reach the 600-point plateau.

Several Bearcats approaching final collegiate games
With the single elimination postseason here, several BU players will have their careers on the line with each tournament game. Graduate students Christian Hinckson (133 NCAA games), Ogheneyole Akuwovo (92) and Miles Gibson (74) plus seniors Dan Petcash (95), Jacob Falko (83), Taveion White (57) and Ador Athuai (33) are expected to close the book on their collegiate careers after this season.  

3-point accuracy is biggest indicator of outcome
Three-point shooting accuracy has become the strongest indicator of BU's success. In games when BU shoots a higher percentage than its opponent, the Bearcats are 12-2. When opponents shoot the 3-ball better, BU is 1-15. The 70-point scoring mark also remains a key indicator for Binghamton's success. BU is 8-1 when they score more than 70 and 5-16 when they are at or below 70. The Bearcats also are 7-2 when they commit fewer turnovers and 6-15 when they commit the same or more. When tied or leading at the half the Bearcats are 11-3. When trailing, they are 2-14.