They said it would never happen.
The Binghamton University men’s basketball team (20-8, 13-3 AE) would come into the 2008-09 season without its top three scorers from last season and was favored to finish fifth in the conference. At a preseason media day, when asked who would be starting in the new lineup, head coach Kevin Broadus had said “You tell me who should start, because I don’t know yet. I’m going to let [the players] figure it out in practice.”
And yet here they are, the No. 1 seed in the America East after clinching a share of the regular season title on an eight-game winning streak with a wholly redesigned team including the top-scorer, sixth-leading rebounder, third-leading assist man and second- and fourth-leading blockers in the AE conference.
The Bearcats, however, are in no position to celebrate their accomplishments. They will face the winner of the No. 8 Hartford versus No. 9 Maine game in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
The Bearcats have occasionally missed the mark in some games, including a loss at Albany, a team which was defeated by both Hartford and Maine during the season. Binghamton, however, has swept both the Hawks and the Black Bears in the regular season.
The Bearcats, on the periphery, have the upper hand with a strong offensive and defensive unit made up of players that are on the top of AE stats.
The green and white brings with them top scorer D.J. Rivera, who averages 20.2 points per game, and guard Emanuel “Tiki” Mayben who puts up 4.6 assists per game.
Although Maine may not have the advantage, it does not mean that they do not pose a threat to the Bearcats.
The last time Broadus’ squad played against Maine, they trailed the Black Bears until the last 12 minutes of the game. After the affair, he stressed how he wanted the Bearcats to play for the full 40 minutes instead of the last 20.
The biggest threats from the Black Bear squad is the team’s top scorer, junior guard Mark Socoby and the fourth-leading rebounder in the conference, sophomore forward Sean McNally. The Bearcats should not let Maine’s free-throw shooting go unnoticed as it was their Achilles’ heel in the last game. The Black Bears shot 75.7 percent from the line whereas Binghamton put up 64.5. Maine is also fourth in the conference in 3-point shooting percentage.
Should Hartford take the spot to face the No. 1 seed, the Bearcats should be wary of top-Hawk scorer senior Jaret von Rosenberg and senior top-rebounder Michael Turner. Hartford will definitely have to bolster its defense with more defensive rebounds and assists if it hopes to match up to the Bearcats.
He may not have known who his starters would be back in October, but now, nearly five months later, Broadus has before him an entire team that could take away the championship crown.