BURLINGTON, Vt. – Binghamton men's basketball (4-13, 0-2 AE) pushed conference favorite Vermont (10-7, 2-0 America East) to the wire in a heartbreaking 60-59 loss Thursday night at Patrick Gym.

The Bearcats played with the lead for much of the game and led by six with 3:44 remaining. Two tough whistles in the final 20 seconds each went against Binghamton and decided the game. A foul call after Bing had secured a defensive rebound put the Catamounts on the line for the deciding points with 18 seconds left. Down one, Binghamton had a potential game-winning layup by junior guard Jeremiah Quigley blocked with contact with 4.5 seconds left. After a foul and two UVM misses at the line, a last-ditch half court shot was offline at the buzzer, allowing Vermont to escape with the win.

Quigley played an exceptional game and nearly produced the program's first triple-double in 35 years. The conference assists leader wound up with game-highs of 21 points and 10 rebounds and also handed out eight assists. Quigley's pair of free throws with 35 seconds left gave the Bearcats their final lead, 59-58.

Binghamton held Vermont 18 points under its season scoring average and seemed destined for its first win at Patrick Gym in 17 years. But a 9-0 Catamounts run early in the second half brought the hosts back into the game and after putting 36 points on the board in the first half, Binghamton managed just seven field goals and 23 points in the closing half.

Senior guard Wes Peterson, Jr. joined Quigley in double figures with 11 points.  

The game featured eight ties and 13 lead changes and the Bearcats held the lead for nearly double the time of UVM.

The Bearcats played one of their best opening halves in 26 tries at Patrick Gym, twice leading by seven points before settling on a 36-31 intermission margin. Quigley scored 11 of the team's first 20 points and wound up with 13 points and five assists in the half. Binghamton shot 52 percent and outrebounded the Catamounts. The half featured four ties and six lead changes.

Binghamton next hosts UMass Lowell at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Events Center.