EVANSTON, Ill. – The Binghamton men's basketball team (0-1) fell to Northwestern (1-0) 86-60 to open the 2026-27 season Monday at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Demetrius Lilley put up 11 points and a game-high 13 rebounds for his ninth double-double as a Bearcat, while
Bobby Montgomery, Jr., added 10 points, two steals and one block in his Binghamton debut. Northwestern was led by Jack Karasinski, who scored 24 points, and Jake West, who had 20 points and 12 assists.
The Wildcats stormed out to a 12-3 lead within the first four minutes of the opening half. Binghamton chipped away to bring itself within six points at 16-10 with 12:46 remaining. However, Northwestern shot 72 percent as a team on 18-25 shooting in the first 20 minutes, including 58.3 percent on 7-12 shooting from beyond the arc, to take 51-35 lead into halftime.
Binghamton tried to rally in the second half, as
Evan Ashe scored the Bearcats' first two buckets. Lilley scored another five points and grabbed four rebounds in the half to secure the double-double. But the Bearcats were unable to catch the Wildcats, as Karasinski scored another 12 points in the final half to help Northwestern prevail.
Binghamton next plays at Saint Peter's at 7 p.m., on Thursday in Jersey City, N.J., as part of the inaugural America East-Metro Challenge.
Mirabito is the presenting sponsor of Bearcats Men's Basketball.
