VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton men's basketball (8-5, 0-0 AE) opens its 16-game America East slate with a road game at Bryant (9-7, 1-0 AE) on Thursday. The teams tip at 7 p.m. at the Chace Athletic Center in Smithfield, R.I. It's the first of a two-game, four-day road trip for the Bearcats, who also play at UAlbany on Saturday afternoon. 

Binghamton has been idle since toppling Marywood 108-52 on Dec. 30 in its final non-conference game. 

ABOUT BRYANT 

• Began league play with 81-67 win at UMBC on Saturday
• In that game, Sherif Gross-Bullock went off for 41 points (7-of-12 3-pt.) and Bryant scored 48 second-half points to pull away
• Team is averaging 10 three-pointers a game (37% shooting)
• Picked to finish third in AE Preseason Coaches' Poll — one spot ahead of the Bearcats
• Went 8-7 in non-conference play with huge 61-52 win over No. 10 Florida Atlantic plus wins over Drexel, Towson, Siena and Brown
• Led by pair of reigning all-conference players Sherif Gross-Bullock and Earl Timberlake
• Return three starters from 17-13 team that went 8-8 in AE and drew No. 6 seed (lost at No. 3 UNH in quarters)
• Team is 37-7 at home (84%) in last four years
• Phil Martelli, Jr., three-year associate head coach, was named head coach on Nov. 15, taking over for Jared Grasso  

ALL-TIME SERIES vs. BRYANT 

• Bryant leads 4-2
• Teams split the season series last year — their first as America East opponents — with Bryant winning 82-78 in Rhode Island and BU countering one month later with an 84-67 home win
• Teams played twice as D2 members during 2000-01 season with Bryant winning both games
• Home team has won five of the six all-time meetings and each of the last four head-to-head 
• Bearcats are 0-3 at Chace Athletic Center
• In last year's conference opener in Smithfield, Bryant (10-4) made five three throws in the final 26 seconds to hold off BU 82-78. The Bearcats went toe-to-toe with a Bulldogs team that ranked sixth in the nation in offense (85.8 ppg.) and was picked to finish second in the America East. Binghamton was within four points over the entire final 15 minutes of the game and had a last shot to tie it with four seconds left. The Bearcats led for nearly half the game and there were 10 lead changes. Dan Petcash led BU's offense with a season-high 22 points.
• In the return game on Jan. 28 in Vestal, Petcash (24 pts.) led a quartet of double-digit scorers and second-place BU blew past Bryant 84-67 in front of 3,394 fans to gain a split of the season series. The Bearcats stifled the league's most potent offense (84 ppg.), holding the Bulldogs 17 points under their scoring average. 

SUPERLATIVES ABOUND IN MARYWOOD ROUT 
The Bearcats ended the 2023 calendar year in fashion with a 108-52 rout of Division III Marywood on Dec. 30. Six players reached double-digits, BU shot 70% in the first half and cruised. Binghamton pulled down 54 rebounds, tying the its single-game record. The team's +29 rebound margin set the new standard and the 24 assists tied the school record. The 108 team points represented the third-most in BU's 23 years of Division I and the margin of victory (56) was second-highest all-time.  

WALSH NAMED AMERICA EAST ROOKIE OF WEEK
Freshman forward Gavin Walsh earned America East Rookie of the Week honors on Jan. 2 after totaling a season-high 19 points and grabbing nine rebounds in the win over Marywood. It was Walsh's first collegiate weekly honor and he now joins teammate Evan Ashe (Nov. 13) as a ROW recipient. 

EIGHT WINS IN NON-CONFERENCE PLAY
The Bearcats registered an 8-5 mark in non-conference play — the second-most non-conference wins in its Division I era. The team produced two separate three-game win streaks, with its marquee win being a commanding 82-59 victory over a Marist team that jumped to a 7-2 start heading into their MAAC conference play.  

BIG GAP BEFORE AE OPENER
Because of a first-week conference bye, BU will have waited nearly two weeks since the team's 108-52 win over Marywood on Dec. 30. With the semester break and holidays, the Bearcats have played just one game in a 19-day stretch and will have 21 days between Division I opponents. BU will now settle into its two-games-a-week routine for the next seven weeks with games on Thursdays and Saturdays. 

AMERICA EAST OPENERS
Binghamton is 7-15 all-time in America East openers, including 5-8 in road openers. For the second straight year, BU opens in Smithfield against the Bulldogs. Last year, Bryant prevailed 82-78.

THE BEARCATS IN THE AMERICA EAST
Binghamton is entering its 23rd season of membership in the America East. The Bearcats are 135-221 all-time (38%) during those two decades. The team's best regular season conference records came in 2008-09 (13-3, 1st) and 2005-06 (12-4, 2nd). The program also had 10 America East wins in 2003-04 (5th place) and nine wins in both 2002-03 (4th) and 2007-08 (T-4th). Binghamton went 8-8 last season (T-4th) to record its best conference win percentage in 13 years. The Bearcats then posted a second straight quarterfinal upset road win to reach the tournament semifinals for the third time in five years. The only current programs to eclipse that achievement are two-time reigning champion Vermont and UMBC .     

TOP-FOUR SPOT, HOME PLAYOFF GAME IS TARGET
As the 16-game conference slate opens, Binghamton will begin its quest to secure a top-four regular season spot with the prize being a home quarterfinal game on March 9. The last time BU hosted a home playoff game was the 2009 championship game, which No. 1 BU won 61-51 over No. 6 UMBC. The last time the Bearcats hosted a quarterfinal game was in 2006, when No. 2 BU toppled No. 7 Maine, 71-62. Binghamton is 10-16 all-time in the America East tournament (3-3 home). 

HISTORY SAYS YOU NEED 9+ CONFERENCE WINS TO BE IN TOP-4
Tracking the win-loss records relative to the final standings over the last 15 years (since BU last hosted a playoff game) yields an average number of wins required to finish among the top-4 and secure at least one home playoff game. The average wins (since 2009) of the fourth-place America East finisher is 9.44 (win percentage of 59%). Third-place finishers have averaged 10.4 wins (65%). Second-place teams have won 11.8 games (74%) and the regular season champion has averaged 14 wins (88%). So a 9-7 BU record (one-game improvement over last season) will likely put the Bearcats in the mix for a top-four spot, with tiebreakers always in play to sort out the seeds. 

CHALLENGING SCHEDULE TO OPEN AE PLAY
Three of BU's first four America East games come against teams picked to finish in the top-three in the Coaches' Preseason Poll. Bryant (3rd), Vermont (1st) and UMass Lowell (2nd) await the Bearcats, who also have a road game at longtime SUNY Rival UAlbany to complete the quartet of tough games. Four of the team's first six games are on the road.  

BEARCATS JUMPED OUT TO QUICK CONFERENCE START LAST SEASON
Last season BU shook off its opening loss at Bryant and rattled off four straight wins to start 4-1 and sit along in first place on Jan. 21. Three losses in the next four games brought BU back to the middle of the pack. But another win streak (three in a row) took the Bearcats to 8-4 and in second place with four games remaining. But four straight losses (two in OT) dropped BU from second to fifth in the final seeding, which pinned BU into a semifinal pairing with No. 1 seed and eventual champion Vermont.  

BALANCED SCORING, REBOUNDING 
Binghamton has six players averaging 8.0 or more points. By comparison, last season's team only had four in that range. Five different players have led the team in game scoring this season (Chenery 7, Ashe 2, Balogun 2, Walker, Walsh). Seven different players have been the top rebounder.  

TORRENCE LEADS AMERICA EAST, RANKS 5TH IN NCAA IN ASSISTS 
Graduate guard Symir Torrence has moved near the top of the nation in assists. With at least five assists in every game this season and 10 in BU's most recent game vs. Marywood, he now ranks fifth in the country (7.2/game). That average also leads the America East by a full two per game. Sam Sessoms holds the BU Division I record for season assist average (4.8 in 2019-20). Torrence also leads BU in rebounding (6.0) and is third in scoring (9.2). He has scored nine or more points in four straight games.

LOPSIDED NON-CONFERENCE GAMES
The Bearcats have played just three (of 13) games that were decided by single digits this season and none less than five points (5,6,7 pts). Nearly half the games have resulted in a margin of 15 or more points. The average margin of victory for either team in the 10 double-digit games (where BU is 5-5) has been a whopping 27 points. 

BEARCATS PROTECTING THE RIM
Binghamton ranks second in the America East and 40th in the country with 61 blocks (4.7/game). The Bearcats also are second in the AE in rebound margin (+5.5) and rank 53rd in the nation in defensive rebounds (28.2/game).   

NOTABLE TEAM TRENDS
The Bearcats are 8-0 when outshooting opponents and 7-0 when holding opponents to under 40% shooting. Binghamton is 7-1 when holding the rebounding edge. In scoring, BU is 9-2 when putting at least three players in double figures. When BU holds its opponent under 70, it is 7-0. Binghamton has held a halftime lead in nine of 13 games and is 8-1 in those games.   

BINGHAMTON SECOND IN ATTENDANCE
Binghamton currently sits in second place in America East home attendance at 1,978. The Bearcats only trail UAlbany (2,051), which has been aided by the re-opening of its renamed Broadview Center (formerly SEFCU Arena) after a year of renovations. Vermont is third (1,963) and UMBC is fourth (1,391). 

AMERICA EAST LEADERS 
Senior forward Nehemiah Benson leads the America East in field goal percentage (65.1%), joining graduate guard Symir Torrence as conference stat leaders. Senior guard Tymu Chenery is fourth in blocks (1.7), eighth in scoring (14.8) and ninth in field goal percentage (50.4%).  

20-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF EVENTS CENTER
This January will mark the 20-year anniversary of the Events Center — BU's home venue (4,429 capacity this season). The inaugural game in the $33.1 million building was Jan. 31, 2004 (a 75-68 win over Hartford). The venue has hosted multiple America East Championships (2005, 2006, 2008) and the marquee game — the 2009 America East championship game when the top-seeded Bearcats beat defending champion UMBC 61-51 to capture the program's only conference title and NCAA berth. Heading into this season, the Bearcats are 115-149 all-time in the Events Center (44%). Binghamton has led the America East in home attendance in 10 of the last 18 years. Last year BU finished second (2,110/game) to Vermont.