DURHAM, N.H. – New Hampshire (12-7, 4-2 America East) closed out overtime with a 13-4 run to defeat visiting Binghamton men's basketball (8-10, 0-5 AE) 79-73 Thursday night at Lundholm Gym.

The game featured 12 ties and 12 lead changes with the last one belonging to the Wildcats with 2:14 left in the extra session. The Bearcats twice led by three in OT, the last time on a 15-foot jumper from graduate forward Armon Harried that gave BU a 69-66 lead with 4:04 left. But UNH drove to the basket on successive possessions to take the lead and then sank seven free throws in the final 42 seconds to seal the win.

"We did a lot of good things but we weren't able to close it out," head coach Levell Sanders said. "There were a few key possessions down the stretch and a couple of missed opportunities. I thought we had a lot of open shots at the end … but they made more plays than us to win the game."

Binghamton had twice the time with the lead as UNH (24+ minutes) and led by as many as 12 points in the second half before the Wildcats rallied. Graduate forward Dan Petcash nailed a 3-pointer with 1:16 left in regulation that gave BU a 64-60 cushion, but UNH got two back at the free throw line and then forced OT with a driving layup with three seconds left. Over the final 10 minutes of regulation, neither team led by more than four points.

UNH enjoyed a noted advantage at the free throw line, where they finished 24-of-33.

Sophomore forward Chris Walker led four BU players in double figures with 17 points. He added eight boards in a career-high 38 minutes. Petcash had 16 points – 11 after halftime – on 6-of-9 shooting. Harried wound up with 12 points and seven boards and senior forward Nehemiah Benson added 10 points. Graduate point guard Symir Torrence chipped in eight points, nine assists and six rebounds. Torrence entered the game ranked fifth in the nation in assists (7.1/game).

The first half was a back-and-forth affair with eight ties and seven lead changes. Walker tallied 12 points and five rebounds and BU closed out the half with a 9-2 run to take a 37-33 edge into the locker room. Then BU pushed its lead to double digits by starting the second half with a 10-2 run. The combined 19-4 run bridged halftime and put the Bearcats in the driver's seat.  

The Bearcats wrap up their four-day, two-game New England road swing with a Saturday afternoon game at Maine.