Let’s get one thing straight right off the bat: Wednesday night’s men’s basketball game was not “great” — in fact, far from it.

In front of a record number of BU Zoo-ers, both Vermont and Binghamton made more than their fair share of errors. (Even the referees had their off moments, but that’s a separate discussion.)

Vermont point guard Mike Trimboli, one of the league’s most pleasant surprises until this point, shot a very uncharacteristic 3-for-19 from the field. For BU, freshman forward Ian Milne played the worst game I’ve ever seen him play, missing rebound after rebound after rebound, while junior 2-guard Troy Hailey missed eight of nine threes.

But on this night, the teams’ poor play was overshadowed by an almost unprecedented amount of raw emotion. In 50 tough minutes of basketball, in front of a record BU Zoo crowd, Vermont and Binghamton defined what mid-major basketball is all about.

This tooth-and-nail style has become natural for the Bearcats, whose scrappy defensive style is finally starting to fully click in Al Walker’s sixth season at the helm. Seniors Sebastian Hermenier and Andre Heard, fed up from last year’s frustrations and this year’s out-of-conference disasters (a 10-point home loss to Brown, almost losing to North Florida [RPI 334 of 334 teams]), are leading their team through an America East minefield with unprecedented success.

While the Bearcats sit atop the standings, chaos is ensuing below. Albany was breezing through the conference until losing back-to-back at Vermont and yes, home to UNH. Boston University (5-3), another popular preseason pick, suffered an awful OT loss at UMBC. Hartford sits at 3-5 after getting creamed at Boston on Wednesday, and injury-riddled Maine is also 3-5 in seventh place. Perennial cupcake team Stony Brook is 1-7 … with their only win against Vermont, who came one open layup from winning in Binghamton on Wednesday.

Whew, that was a mouthful; but what does it all mean?

It’s obvious that there is no dominant team this season. Last year’s superstar senior class is gone, opening the door for almost every team. Parity is everywhere.

With that in mind, any little advantage a team can get is huge. Luckily for Binghamton, hosting the conference tournament is more than a “little” advantage. Since the days the games were played in the old West Gym, the BU Zoo has always provided a boost for the team, but it’s always been inevitable that we would fall apart. This year, that’s not so.

With that in mind, I implore the fans to cut Al Walker’s squad a break. Yes, the quality of basketball may not be as high as what you can watch on TV, but the sense of pride you feel rooting for your own school is unmatched, no matter how many Duke sweatshirts you own.

So come out and cheer tomorrow. Heck, maybe you’ll love it so much you’ll come back and watch the girls’ game with me on Sunday. See you there.