Binghamton University’s men’s basketball team (18-8, 11-3 AE) will attempt to defeat conference opponent New Hampshire (10-14, 6-7 AE) for the fifth time in as many games on Sunday. A victory would also be the seventh-straight win for the streaking Bearcats squad.
Sunday’s game will be the second meeting between the Bearcats and the Wildcats of the 2008-09 season.
In the first battle, the Bearcats were 13 points better than their opponents, winning 60-47. However, Binghamton head coach Kevin Broadus thought that New Hampshire was a tough matchup and that the Bearcats can ill afford to underestimate their opponent for the upcoming game.
“We gotta play our A-game,” Broadus said, “because this team has something to play for. They’re trying to move up in the standings.”
Junior guard Malik Alvin, who has been battling lower body injuries but should be good to go on Sunday, led all scorers in the first game with 22 points on great shooting percentages. He was the only Bearcat to score in double digits, as the team had a relatively balanced scoring effort.
Junior swingman D.J. Rivera, who leads the conference in scoring, is one of only two America East players to average over 18 points per contest, was held to just six points in the first meeting against the Wildcats.
Freshman Kyrie Sutton had perhaps his finest game as a Bearcat, pulling down eight rebounds, scoring four points, dishing out two assists and blocking a shot in 19 minutes.
New Hampshire was led by a 17-point, four-assist effort by senior guard Tyrece Gibbs, who leads his team in scoring at 13.8 points per game. However, Gibbs, who is second in the conference in 3-point shooting percentage at 40.4 percent, converted on only two-of-ten 3-point attempts.
Sophomore guard Alvin Abreu, who is second on his team in scoring at 12.7 points per game, had his worst game of the season against the Bearcats. He failed to hit a single field goal attempt and finished the game with three points and five turnovers in 26 minutes.
The Bearcats uncharacteristically played a 2-3 zone in the game, though it seemed to have paid dividends against the Wildcats. As a team, the Wildcats shot a putrid 27.5 percent from the field, which is below their conference-worst 38.3 percent field goal shooting average. The Bearcats are starting to make a name for themselves on the defensive end. They are currently second in the conference in opponent field goal percentage at 41.8 percent per game.
Binghamton will need to win Sunday’s game if they want to keep control of their own destiny and get the No. 1 seed in the America East Conference Tournament.
“It’s Super Bowl Sunday for us,” Broadus said. “That’s the way we’re looking at it. We’re just trying to stay at the top [of the conference].”
The game will be played at 2 p.m. on Sunday at the Events Center.