Going into his fifth and final year of eligibility, graduate student guard Dan Petcash is as optimistic as ever when it comes to the 2023-24 season. By virtue of being the most veteran player on the team, Petcash has a role that is uniquely his through all the experience that he has gained throughout the years at Binghamton.

“I’m the type of guy where whatever the coaching staff needs or wants me to do, I will do,” Petcash said. “[The coaching staff], they’re trying to get us to play together, play basketball the right way so that we don’t have to rely on one guy making dribble moves. [Our goal is to] play team basketball.”

Last season, Petcash was the Bearcats’ main three-point shooting threat, knocking down 40.6 percent of his shots from beyond the arc. He also shot an efficient 49.8 percent from the field and led the team with five games in which he scored 20 or more points. Last season, on Jan. 28, Petcash notched 24 points and eight rebounds against Bryant to secure a home victory for BU.

In his 2022-23 campaign, Petcash saw more action than he has throughout his entire college career. He played 30 games with 25 starts and averaged 31.8 minutes a game. During this time on the court, he averaged 9.8 points and 4.2 rebounds. Ultimately, Petcash still sees places where he can improve his statistics through his play style.

“I want to try to be a better playmaker this year,” Petcash said. “Last year [and in years past], I had to rely on other players making advantages for me, so this year I want to work on creating those advantages for myself and for my teammates.”

Petcash expressed his confidence in the Bearcats’ ability to defend the basket and expects nothing to change from their defensive performance from last season. Last year, Binghamton held its opponents to a 43.7 percent field goal percentage, an average of 71.5 points per game and a 32.8 percent three-point field goal percentage, which placed the team in the top five of the America East (AE) in each category.

“Our biggest thing we’ve been working on this year is to get better offensively,” Petcash said. “I know we struggled from the three-point line [last] year, so we’ve all been working in the off-season on that … the expectation from last year is that we rely on our defense to win games. That [is] something we have to change for this season”

The veteran guard spends his time outside of the court sharpening his strategic tools through playing chess. Seeing a play unfold before it happens is a talent that requires a high basketball IQ and as a fifth-year player, Petcash’s experience is unmatched and will give Binghamton an upper hand every time he steps on the court. Fundamentally, Petcash sees the mindset necessary for playing chess to be analogous to playing basketball.

“There is a lot of strategy involved in both,” Petcash said. “You have to be able to think ahead in basketball like you do in chess. Especially on an individual level, you have to see a play happening before it happens, so you know what to do. That’s the same with chess. You have to think multiple moves ahead.”

Petcash is ready for the future. He believes that this year’s team is well-rounded and ready for all the challenges ahead. Defensively, the Bearcats will retain their prowess and on the offensive end, he trusts that his teammates all worked hard to make a change from last season. He explains that all of the pieces have been assembled, and the team is ready to deliver a championship to Binghamton when March comes around.

“We’re really looking forward to playing for all of the fans and making the games fun and exciting for everyone,” Petcash said.