Binghamton’s men’s basketball team has played three games, and you know what that means. In this View From the Zoo, I’ll take a look at the early season. A 2-1 start is promising for the Bearcats, but Niagara and Mt. Saint Mary’s are teams that they were expected to beat. Both teams had some of their best players suspended for the games, but I’ll take a 2-1 start over last year’s 0-5, regardless of the circumstances.

Remember when Steve Proctor broke his hand and was expected to come back in six to eight weeks? Well by my count, it’s been less than five weeks, and Proctor made a triumphant return to the Events Center in his first game back. Coming off the bench against Mt. Saint Mary’s, he scored 14 on three of seven 3-point shooting. More impressive were his two monstrous blocks — with his broken hand, no less — both of which changed the game. Proctor was one of the most efficient players when he got playing time last year, and it looks as though he’ll be one of the better Binghamton players this season on both sides of the ball. It was a pleasant surprise to see him play yesterday.

Upcoming opponents might have to change their scouting reports after the two Bearcat victories. Binghamton has shot an excellent 42.5% from beyond the arc in those wins. If the guards keep that up, it will take a lot of pressure off the inexperienced frontcourt. Inserting Proctor into the lineup helps the shooting quite a bit; his length allows him to easily shoot over defenders.

The frontcourt has finally found some guys who can rebound in Duane James and Lazar Trifunovic, who are both averaging a respectable six boards per contest. What’s lacking now, though, is frontcourt scoring. No big men have been able to score with consistency, though James and Trifunovic come closest. Ian Milne, touted in the preseason as the key to any possible Binghamton success, hasn’t added any new post moves. Milne’s jumper and hook shot are great weapons, but he needs to develop the ability to really pound the ball in under the basket.

The America East conference won’t be receiving two bids to the NCAA tournament any time soon, but it sure looks like it will happen eventually. The conference is already much better than it was last year. Albany beat Bucknell in the Danes’ home opener, and Vermont upset then-No. 14 Boston College on the road. Even lowly Stony Brook looks to be a player in the conference — the much-improved Seawolves defeated Big Ten’s Penn State in Happy Valley. It’s those kind of results that make me wish head coach Al Walker would schedule at least one or two ranked opponents. Why should Albany and Vermont get to have all the fun? A team can’t have a huge upset if it doesn’t play against big-time teams. Walker should know that — his 2001 Bearcats fell within 1 point of upsetting UNC and received national attention, despite coming up short.