Riding a three-game win streak into a home game against an intense rival is never an easy task. The Binghamton University men’s basketball team showed that they were up to the task on Monday night, defeating the University of Albany, 88-75, at the Events Center.
The game marked the second sellout in Events Center history, as 5,142 spectators watched the Bearcats win their fourth-straight game.
Binghamton (16-8, 9-3 AE) is perched near the top of the America East standings, while Albany (13-11, 5-6 AE) faces a must-win game against Stony Brook on Thursday.
The night was also history-making in nature, as the largest regular season crowd ever at the Events Center saw Binghamton junior D.J. Rivera break both the single season Binghamton University scoring and field goals made records.
With his 27-point performance, Rivera now has scored 497 points during the season, besting former Bearcat Andre Heard’s 495-point mark by two points. His nine field goals gave him 179 on the season, eclipsing Heard’s record of 175.
“I don’t focus on records, I’m just doing what my team needs me to do,” Rivera said. “But it’s really good to know that I have them, it’s a great accomplishment.”
Even though he got a record performance from Rivera and fellow junior Emanuel “Tiki” Mayben, who had 25 points in the game, Binghamton head coach Kevin Broadus knew that it would not be an easy encounter when his team played the Great Danes.
“They’re not going to bow down, no matter how many points we scored,” Broadus said.
After falling behind on the opening sequence, the Bearcats answered back immediately, taking the lead on a layup and foul shot by Rivera. Binghamton then lost the lead on a 3-pointer by Albany sophomore Tim Ambrose that made the score 5-3. However, Binghamton answered back with a 3-pointer of their own by Mayben to take the lead, 6-5. They did not look back, never surrendering the lead again, leading by as many as 20 points at one point in the second half.
Ambrose led all scorers with 28 points.
“I thought that we lost this game in the first half, plain and simple,” said Albany head coach Will Brown.
The key, Broadus said, was being able to hit shots, and hit them often.
“Every time we play Albany, it seems like we can’t make shots, but tonight we made them, and we constantly made them,” he said.
The Bearcats also took advantage of 19 Albany turnovers, scoring 26 points off of the Great Danes’ mistakes. In contrast, the Great Danes were only able to notch six points off of the Bearcats’ miscues, something Brown felt had a huge impact on the final score of the game.
“They scored 26 points off of our turnovers, we had six off theirs. There’s the game,” Brown said.
Mayben led the way offensively for Binghamton through the first half, going 5-9 from beyond the 3-point arc, finishing the half with 15 points. He would not hit another three for the remainder of the game, but added 10 additional points on 8-17 overall shooting. He also added seven assists and four rebounds.
“I know how to score. In high school, I was a scorer,” Mayben said. “I know how to score; it’s a matter of being confident, and I’m confident.”
Primarily known as a “pass-first” guard, Mayben has averaged nearly 23 points per game over the last three contests. His on-court accomplishments were rewarded on Monday when he was named the America East Player of the Week.
Of his guard’s recent performance, Binghamton’s head coach was quick to offer praise.
“He’s a talent, and that’s what we brought him here for,” Broadus said. “This is the Tiki, the Emanuel, that I envisioned.”
The next test will be a big one for the Bearcats, as they travel to square off with conference-leading Boston University on Saturday. The Terriers (14-9, 9-2 AE) are winners of six straight, their last loss coming on Jan. 14 against Vermont, a team that Binghamton has defeated twice this season. However, the last time the two teams met, the Terriers got the best of Binghamton, defeating them 81-64 at the Events Center on Jan. 17. The Terriers are led offensively by sophomore John Holland and junior Corey Lowe, both of whom are near the top of the conference scoring statistics. Holland led the way for Boston University in the last game against the Bearcats, scoring 28 points and pulling down eight rebounds. Lowe contributed 16 points and six assists.
Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. at Case Gym.