VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton men's basketball closes a three-game homestand Saturday afternoon when the Bearcats (3-7) welcome Central Connecticut State (5-4) to the Events Center. The teams will tip shortly after 4 p.m. following the Bearcat women's game against Marist, which begins at 2 p.m.

The Bearcats are led by senior center Demetrius Lilley, who leads the America East in rebounding (10.2) and ranks second in scoring (16.4). Lilley ranks second in the NCAA with seven double-doubles. He also is one of just three players across the country to rank in the top-2 in their conference in both scoring and rebounding. 

Junior point guard Jeremiah Quigley leads the conference in assists (6.0) and ranks 25th in the country. He also ranks 10th in the America East in scoring (12.3 ppg.).

Binghamton has five games remaining before America East play begins (Jan. 3). 

ABOUT CCSU
•    Coming off 73-56 loss at Northeastern Sunday
•    In that game, CCSU trailed by 14 at half and couldn't recover
•    Have posted two wins over Power 4 conference foes, 60-59 over ACC member Boston College on Nov. 11 and 67-54 over Big Ten member Rutgers on Nov. 21
•    Lost all five starters and eight lettermen from 25-7 team that won the NEC regular season title last year before losing 46-43 to St. Francis in the tournament title game
•    Program has won 20+ games in each of the last two seasons (27-5 in NEC)
•    Picked to finish second of 10 in the NEC Preseason Poll 

ALL-TIME SERIES vs. CCSU
•    CCSU leads the all-time series, which began in 2005, 5-2
•    Binghamton has won two of the last three however
•    Last Nov. 24 in New Britain, CCSU crashed the glass for 15 offensive rebounds and held off visiting Binghamton 64-56 at Detrick Gym. The Bearcats trimmed a nine-point halftime deficit to just two  early in the second half. But CCSU countered with a 14-4 run spanning five minutes and the Bearcats drew no closer than six the rest of the way. Tymu Chenery led the Bearcats with 16 points – 13 coming in the second half. Nehemiah Benson added 14 points. The Bearcats outshot CCSU but the rebound margin gave the Blue Devils nine more shots.
•    This is the second of three games against NEC members (Le Moyne, Mercyhurst). Binghamton is 25-20 all-time vs. the NEC

TWO TOP-TIER ASSIST MEN SQUARE OFF
Saturday's game will feature a pair of point guards who rank among the nation's assist leaders. CCSU senior Jay Rodgers ranks eighth in the NCAA with 6.7 assists per game and Bearcat junior Jeremiah Quigley ranks 25th at 6.0 per game. 

"BATTLE FOR THE INTERSTATE" GOES TO Le MOYNE
Last Saturday, visiting Le Moyne built a 12-point halftime lead and then shot 61% in the second half to hold off the Bearcats 78-63. The win allowed the Dolphins to capture their first "Battle for the Interstate" trophy in the third year of the rivalry series. With the loss, Binghamton will have to cover construction/plowing costs along the I-81 corridor for the next year.     

BENIGNI HEATING UP
Graduate guard Jackson Benigni is averaging 13.7 points in his last three games. He has logged 35 minutes a game during that stretch. Benigni leads the Bearcats in made 3-pointers for the season (17) and also ranks second in the America East in free throw percentage (26-of-29, 90%).    

LILLEY SECOND IN NCAA IN DOUBLE-DOUBLES, AMONG LEADERS IN REBOUNDS, MINUTES
Senior center Demetrius Lilley has notched back-to-back double-doubles and now has five doubles in his last six games and seven for the season, which ranks No. 2 in the nation (behind Delrecco Gillespie of Kent State with nine). Lilley leads the America East and ranks 16th in the NCAA in rebounds (10.2). He also is second in the conference in scoring (16.4 ppg.) and fifth in free throw shooting (81%). Lilley's minutes per game (36:24) leads the America East and ranks eighth in the nation. He is the only "big man" among the nation's leaders in minutes.      

QUIGLEY PILING UP ASSISTS, POINTS
Junior point guard Jeremiah Quigley is quickly starting to assert himself early in his Bearcat tenure. He leads the America East and ranks 25th in the country in assist average (6.0) and also ranks fourth in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio, second in minutes (35/game) and 10th in in scoring (12.3). He has registered 6+ assists five times already this season. Former PG Symir Torrence averaged 7.2 assists in 2023-24 (5th in NCAA).   

JUST CALL US DOUBLE-DOUBLE, REBOUND U.
Bionghamton is in rare company when it comes to its top players being ranked in NCAA rebounding and double-double categories. In the last two years, the Bearcats are the only program in the country with two different players ranked in the top-20 in double-doubles (Gavin Walsh 18th last year with 14, Demetrius Lilley 2nd this year with 7). Further, Binghamton is one of just two schools (New Mexico) with two different players ranked among the top-20 in rebounding (Walsh 5th last year with 10.9, Lilley 16th this year with 10.2). Binghamton is the ONLY program with two different top-20 guys in BOTH categories.   

ROSTER HIT HARD BY INJURIES
The Bearcats have been dealt a series of blows to what was once a deep roster in the summer. Of the 13 scholarship players, six (46%) have been out with injuries for multiple games, four of whom are now done for the season. That number of season-ending injuries and percent of roster lost are believed to to be the highest of any D-I program in the country (NCAA list serve). The injured players have combined to miss 44 games.   

OUTSHOOT OPPONENT, START STRONG ARE KEYS TO UNLOCK WINS
Binghamton has two stat categories that are emerging as indicators of success: field goal percentage and halftime score. When outshooting their opponent from the field, Bing is 3-1. When outshot, they are 0-6. When leading or tied at half, the Bearcats are 3-2. When trailing at half, they are 0-5. 

SIX DIFFERENT STARTING UNITS IN FIRST 10 GAMES
Because of the rash of injuries, coach Levell Sanders has utilized six different starting lineups in the first nine games, with Bryson Wilson being the lone player to start all 10. 

OK WITH OT
The overtime win over Lehigh on Dec. 2 gave the Bearcats wins in five consecutive overtime games dating back to the 2023-24 season. The team was 3-0 last season and won its last overtime game of the 2023-24 season.  

BEARCATS RANK NO. 3 IN NCAA IN POINTS VIA FREE THROW LINE
Led by senior center Demetrius Lilley (54 makes, 81%) and junior guard Jeremiah Quigley (35, 71%), Binghamton is getting to the free throw line and converting points. The Bearcats rank No. 3 in the nation in points from free throws with 29.1% of their points coming at the line. As a team, Bing leads the America East in free throw percentage (75%) and ranks second in makes (180).