Binghamton women’s basketball hosted the No.6-seeded Bryant Bulldogs on Thursday in the America East quarterfinals, narrowly defeating their opponents 45-44. After Bryant took a one-point lead with just five seconds remaining, junior guard Bella Pucci drove into the paint and hit a buzzer-beater layup to give her team the victory.

“I want to just congratulate Bryant on a heck of a season and a heck of a game,” said Binghamton head coach Mary Grimes. “It was back and forth, that’s exactly what America East basketball is about and both plays at the end, we gave up one and then we drew something up for [junior forward Kendall Bennett] to get the ball, but at the end of the day, players make plays. [Pucci] came out and she took it to the basket and focused and finished. It’s just an unbelievable game all around.”

Bryant (18-12, 8-8 AE) quickly shot ahead 4-0 thanks to a pair of baskets on their first two possessions, but the Bearcats (19-11, 10-6 AE) soon found their stride, with an and-one layup from junior guard Yanniah Boyd making it an 11-7 game. Binghamton continued to trail through the first, with the final points of the quarter coming from a pair of free throws from Pucci, bringing the score to 13-11.

Bryant opened the second quarter with five straight points, but a 7-3 scoring run from the Bearcats kept them in the game. In the final minute of the half, a three-pointer from senior guard Meghan Casey tied the game up at 25-25. A floater from Casey, in the paint again, tied it 27-27 with seconds left, keeping the game in a deadlock heading into the second half.

“Kendall [Bennett] was able to defend [Bryant graduate student forward Maranda Nyborg] by herself, so we stopped doubling,” Grimes said. “I think that helped us limit their threes in the second half and then we didn’t allow them to get multiple shots.”

Binghamton was first to score to start the second half, courtesy of a layup from freshman guard Carletta Bennett and three-pointers from junior guard Leah Middleton and Boyd only added to their momentum as they made multiple key stops on defense. The Bearcats managed to hold on to the lead through the remainder of the third, leading by a score of 37-34 as the clock expired.

A layup from senior guard Kaia Goode opened the scorebook in the fourth, but an and-one from Bryant gave them a 40-39 lead. After several minutes of scoreless play, a layup from Kendall Bennett gave the Bearcats the lead back, but Bryant was quick to respond. With just five seconds remaining and the Bearcats trailing by one, Pucci drove into the paint and hit a massive buzzer-beater layup to give the Bearcats a narrow 45-44 victory.

“I got to give credit to everyone on my team, my coaches,” Pucci said. “I wasn’t having the best shooting game, but [Grimes] came over to me right before [the buzzer beater] and she was like, ‘You get the ball, go to the basket.’ And I did.”

Pucci and Middleton were the team’s leading scorers, each putting up nine points, while Pucci also came away with five rebounds and four assists. Casey was not far behind with seven points, along with a pair of steals. Kendall Bennett led the team with eight rebounds and three steals, while Boyd put up seven rebounds to pair with her six points on the night.

“For women’s basketball to be where it is and for the community, they show up every single time we play, but the student body — it made a huge difference,” Grimes said. “It made a huge difference. And credit to our staff, our administration and our president [Anne D’Alleva], got to give her all the kudos that we can. She asked the student body to show up and they did.”

Binghamton will continue its playoff run on the road on Monday, March 9 as it will take on the No. 2-seeded Maine in the AE semifinals. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. at The Pit in Memorial Gymnasium in Orono, Maine.