There are 14 players on the Binghamton University men’s basketball team this season and seven of them are newcomers. Among those seven, three of them, along with one returning player, will compete in the slam dunk contest at tonight’s Late Nite Madness.

The Madness, which is set to begin at 9 p.m. at the Events Center, will introduce both men’s and women’s basketball teams and includes giveaways and prizes. The first 700 fans will receive T-shirts.

But the highlight of the night, along with the women’s three-point shootout competition, will be the men’s slam dunk contest.

Freshmen Moussa Camara and Devon McBride, sophomore Lazar Trifunovic and junior transfer Reggie Fuller will compete in the event, which did not take place last year.

Trifunovic, the 6-foot-8-inch forward, will represent the team’s returning players in the contest and will undoubtedly be the fan favorite. While the fans will be able to recognize Trifunovic, who appeared in 29 games and averaged 10.9 points per game and 6.5 rebounds per game in 28.7 minutes per game, leading the Bearcats in rebounds and field goals made, he is not the favorite to win.

Fuller, the 6-foot-6-inch forward from Texas, is the clear and overwhelming favorite for the competition according to his teammates.

‘Reggie, no doubt about it,’ said senior center Giovanni Olomo. ‘I’d put my money on Reggie.’

‘I’ll see what happens,’ Fuller said. ‘I don’t practice for it. When I get in the air, I’ll just do something.’

Fuller, who compares his dunking style to that of Vince Carter’s, can fly and will steal the show according to most of his teammates. But senior guard Richard Forbes is not convinced.

‘I’m going with Moussa,’ Forbes said. ‘I’m going to teach him some tricks.’

Forbes, who stands at 6 feet, along with senior guard Mike Gordon, who is also 6-foot, were both disappointed that they weren’t involved in the competition. When Gordon was asked who he thought the favorite to win was, he replied, ‘Am I in it?’

When he found out he wasn’t, he went with the favorite Fuller to win the event.

When Forbes was first asked who he thought would win tonight, his immediate response was, ‘Me.’

But once he realized he wasn’t in it, he complained, ‘Are you serious? I want to be in the dunk contest. Why aren’t we in it?’

Gordon replied, ‘Coach Anderson told us, ‘We have a season to worry about.’

While the two seniors watch and cheer from the side, two freshmen will look to pull the upset on Fuller. Camara is a 6-foot-5-inch forward who went to prep school in California, but is originally from Paris, France. McBride, the 6-foot-4-inch guard, played one season at Lutheran Christian Academy, one of the top-ranked prep programs in the country, while averaging 21.2 ppg.

Doors open at 8:30 p.m. tonight. Have your cameras ready.