VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton men's basketball begins its final road swing of the regular season when the Bearcats (5-22, 1-11 America East) travel to Rhode Island to face reigning conference champion Bryant (8-18, 4-8 AE) Thursday night. The teams tip at 6 p.m. at Chace Athletic Center in Smithfield. 

Binghamton sits three games behind Bryant with four to play, making this matchup crucial to maintain the team's playoff hopes. The Bearcats toppled Bryant 63-60 three weeks ago at the Events Center.

After Thursday's game, the team continues its travels to Lowell for a Saturday afternoon meeting with the River Hawks.

ABOUT BRYANT
•    Have dropped four of last six, including two straight lopsided defeats at UML (by 19) and at Vermont last Saturday (by 27)
•    Picked to finish sixth in Coaches' Preseason Poll after suffering heavy turnover (including coach) from team that went 14-2 in AE play (23-12 overall) and won regular season and tourney titles
•    Had to replace entire starting lineup, including Player of Year Earl Timberlake, Newcomer of the Year Barry Evans and first team all-conference guard Rafael Pinzon
•    First-year coach Jamion Christian has assembled 13 new players and a large roster of 19 players, including five internationals 
•    Are 7-4 at home and 1-14 on road this season
•    Bryant is shooting just 40% in league play (last in league) and has the second-lowest-scoring average in the league

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. BRYANT
•    Bryant leads 8-3 and has won five of the last seven
•    Bearcats won first game three weeks ago in Vestal 63-60
•    In that game, Binghamton closed the game with a 10-0 run to overtake Bryant at the Events Center. Jeremiah Quigley tallied eight of his team-high 21 points in the final five minutes as the Bearcats rallied. Down 57-49 with 4:47 left, Binghamton got the needed spark from Quigley, who made his final three shots, sank two clinching free throws with one second left and added two assists to lift the team. His post feed to Zyier Beverly and Beverly's subsequent dunk gave the Bearcats a 61-60 lead with 8.8 seconds remaining. After a Bryant 3-point miss on the other end, Quigley sealed the win with a pair of free throws. 
•    Binghamton have never won in Smithfield (0-5)  

NEED WIN STREAK TO REACH POSTSEASON
After another narrow defeat in its last outing (77-74 loss to UAlbany), the Bearcats are now forced to win at least three of their remaining four games to have a chance to grab the eighth and final playoff spot. A win over Bryant would complete a season sweep (tiebreak advantage) and bring the Bearcats closer to a berth.   

QUIGLEY TOPS CONFERENCE IN ASSISTS, IS 5TH IN SCORING
Junior point guard Jeremiah Quigley continues to lead the America East in assists (6.3/game) and has moved up to fifth in scoring (13.8 ppg.). Quigley ranks 18th in the country in assists.    

QUIGLEY APPROACHING ASSIST RECORD
Junior point guard Jeremiah Quigley has 165 assists this season. It's the second-highest mark in the school's 25-year D-I history. Quigley is eight assists away from tying the school record of 173 set by Symir Torrence in 2023-24. Torrence will still hold the record for assist average (7.2).

BEVERLY RANKS 5TH IN AMERICA EAST EFFICIENCY
Junior forward Zyier Beverly ranks third among all America East players in Player Efficiency Rating (sports-reference.com). The rating is based on per-minute production and Beverly has a rating of 19.9 (league average is 15). In traditional stats, Beverly ranks second in FG% (60%), fourth in blocks (1.4), eithth in rebounding (5.2) and 16th in scoring (11.7).