BANGOR, Maine - Fresh off their biggest win of the season the Maine men's basketball program will stay right at home for their next tilt, a 2:00 PM matchup with America East foe Binghamton University, as the Bearcats come into the Cross Insurance Center with both teams seeking their second America East win of the year.
Binghamton at Maine
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FULL GAME NOTES (PDF)
Date: Sunday, January 19
th
Time: 2:00 PM
Site: Cross Insurance Center
SERIES HISTORY
Overall.........................................................19-19
Streak...........................................Binghamton +2
Last 5 meetings.....................................Maine, 3-2
First Meeting.....................1/20/02, Maine, 83-60
Last Meeting...............................3/2/19, L, 83-60
Last Win..........................2/3/18, W, 81-79 (OT)
LAST TIME OUT
A career-effort by Sergio El Darwich led Maine to their first America East victory of the season on Wednesday night, as the senior co-captain put up 36 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds in Maine's 104-98 overtime victory over UMass-Lowell at the Cross Insurance Center.
Sergio El Darwich took over in the second half, scoring 22 points over the final twenty minutes of regulation and five minutes of overtime to set a new career-high in points with 36 total (10-21 FG) while matching his career-high in assists (10) and rebounds (9).
El Darwich played 44 minutes on the evening, shooting 10-21 from the field, 4-9 from three, and 12-13 from the free-throw line. He committed just two turnovers on the day, both in the first half. Maine outscored 18-12 in the overtime period to lock down the 104-98 victory, their first conference triumph of the season.
Andrew Fleming collected 14 points on the evening, along with three steals and a block in 42 minutes. Freshman Precious Okoh played big minutes down the stretch, recording 14 points on 5-6 shooting in 14 minutes, all in the second half and overtime.
Maine shot 52.3% from the field on the night, their third-best effort of the season, and 44.4% from three, their best mark so far. They also earned 33 free throws, hitting 25 of them, their highest volume night this year. The bench was huge for the Black Bears, outpacing the Riverhawk reserves by a 33-15 mark in scoring.
A LOOK AT THE BEARCATS
Binghamton enters play with an identical 1-3 conference record alongside a 7-10 overall mark so far this year. Their only non-conference common opponent comes in the form of Columbia, who dispatched the Bearcats in their third game of the year by a 75-63 final score. In the conference, they've dropped contests to Albany, UMass-Lowell, and Vermont, while picking up a win over UMBC on January 8th by a 79-75 margin.
The Bearcats bring a very disciplined team to the floor, ranking first in the conference in fewest fouls this season, and they score by stretching the defense out to the three-point line. They lead the America East in three-point field goals per game (9.5), and rank second in total three-point attempts (490, 24th in the nation) and total three-point makes (162, 37th in the nation). All together, they shoot 33.1% from three-point territory, fifth in the conference.
Sophomore Sam Sessoms leads the offense with 17.6 points a game (third in the conference) on a 40.4/30.4/83.7 shooting line. The Bearcats have three players ranked in the top-ten in the conference in minutes per game, including Sessoms and Brenton Mills, but led by George Tinsley who leads the conference and sits third in the nation with 38:16 per contest. Both Mills and Tinsley have earned two America East Rookie of the Week honors so far, while Sessoms was the Nov. 25 Player of the Week.
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