Shea Kenny and Rebecka Lindgren drew the hardest Senior Day assignment of anyone in the America East.

It’s bad enough that the Bearcats (10-16, 6-7 AE) had to tango with second-place Stony Brook on Wednesday; now they get to square off against the two-time defending conference champion Hartford Hawks (19-7, 12-1 AE) in their regular season finale, tomorrow at the Events Center.

But before the game starts, Kenny and Lindgren will be honored for their contributions to the women’s basketball program.

‘I want that to be a special day for our seniors,’ said head coach Rich Conover. ‘Shea and Rebecka have been outstanding assets to our program, on and off the court, and I hope that we can give them a special effort on Saturday.’

Coming off a nine-point loss to the Seawolves, Binghamton’s senior leadership will be required as Hartford’s nationally ranked defense takes the Events Center floor. The secret to Hartford’s success is its commitment on the defensive end, where they allow only 52.6 points per game, an astonishing 7.3 points fewer than the second-ranked defense in the conference (UMBC).

On the offensive end, the Hawks are led by first-team America East lock Danielle Hood, who averages 13.2 points per game and is regarded as the best interior player in the conference. Sophomore point guard Lisa Etienne runs the Hawks from the top of the key and was an instrumental part in Hartford’s 71-64 win earlier in the year against the Bearcats. Every time Binghamton came close in the second half, Etienne made the big plays to preserve Hartford’s comeback victory.

‘To beat those guys, we’ll have to play much more solid than we did [against Stony Brook],’ Conover said. ‘We’ll have to defend much better and handle some more pressure from a good defensive team like Hartford.’

Hartford-Binghamton games almost never disappoint in terms of action, but for the Bearcats action has not been enough, as they have not tasted victory in two years against the conference champs. The Hawks emerged victors in their last four meetings against BU, all of which were close affairs.

Last year’s matchup at the Events Center was arguably the game of the year in America East regular season play, as the Bearcats dropped a 65-64 decision. Binghamton, which had trailed all game, took a 64-61 lead with just over a minute left before the Hawks’ star center Hood hit a layup to cut the lead to one. After senior guard Ikea Witt blocked a potential killer shot from Kenny, Witt drove the lane and got fouled with 1.7 seconds left. She hit both free throws to give Hartford the win.

The Hawks also won the last three games between these teams at Chase Arena, where they currently have a 23-game winning streak against conference opponents. Each game (66-56, 57-46, 71-64) could have turned in Binghamton’s favor with a few plays going in BU’s direction instead of Hartford’s.

This is the first trip back to the Events Center for the Hawks since the 65-64 classic, and Conover wants the students to show up and make their presence felt.

‘I would love to see the BU Zoo come out in full force for a TV game,’ Conover said.

Fully aware of the Downtown bacchanalia that consumes the student body on Friday nights, Conover feels the start time allows students to get over their potential hangovers.

‘It’s even a late start, 3 [p.m.],’ Conover said. ‘So there’s no excuses.’