The new era has begun.

New Binghamton University men’s basketball head coach Kevin Broadus won his home opener in style on Wednesday night, downing the Quinnipiac Bobcats 88-75 behind terrific offensive performances from the starting five. The changes on the sidelines were obvious, as Broadus’ on-court demeanor and substitution patterns were markedly different than those of the previous regime.

By the numbers, the 2007-2008 Bearcats look an awful lot like the 2006-2007 Bearcats. Both squads scored a lot of points and let up a ton as well. But there are underlying differences in the offensive and defensive philosophies of Al Walker and Broadus.

The Bearcats are running a modified Princeton offense, as described in Pipe Dream’s basketball preview. Wednesday’s game showed that Binghamton is embracing the backdoor cut, but unlike conventional Princeton-O teams, the Bearcats waste little time finding shots they want to take. If there are 3-point or slashing opportunities, Binghamton will take them without thinking twice.

A major difference between Walker’s team and Broadus’ is that Broadus has filled his roster with shooters. Whereas last year senior Mike Gordon took over five 3-pointers per game, on Wednesday he did not attempt any. Instead, he focused on driving to the basket and getting the ball to his shooters, tallying him eight assists.

After the game Gordon said, ‘I’ll take eight assists any day, especially with these guys stroking like that.’

Junior Milos Klimovic hit 6-of-12 3-pointers against St. Bonaventure and freshman Moussa Camara (moooooose!) hit 4-of-7 against Quinnipiac. The long-armed frosh had a poor shooting night against Bonaventure, hitting 2-of-10, but kudos to coach Broadus for keeping him in the starting lineup on Wednesday. The kid can really shoot, and though he is thin for his position, he can also play good defense.

Defensively, the Bearcats have allowed 97 and 75 points in two games, which are both mediocre numbers. When the shots are falling, like on Wednesday, the ‘Cats will be able to outgun anyone. But when they shoot 29 percent from three, like at St. Bonaventure, there will be big issues.

There are three reasons why I’m not yet worried about the defense. For one, a fast-tempo offense will lend itself to a lot of possessions for the other team, leading to many total points. The more important stat is average point differential, which shows the difference between the points you score versus those of your opponent.

Second, the full-court press Broadus is running seems to be very successful. Binghamton found tons of transition steals and did not give up easy baskets after Quinnipiac beat the press. Senior guards Gordon and Rich Forbes are tailor-made for this kind of defense (so is Reggie Fuller, who was in foul trouble all night).

And third, centers Jaan Montgomery and Minja Kovacevic are still out with injuries. Neither of them are defensive superstars, but they are both true centers, unlike makeshift big man Lazar Trifunovic. When they return, opponents will have a tough time driving with the big guys clogging the lane. Look for Broadus to slow down the pace once one of these players is back and ready to log significant minutes.