UMBC

West Hartford, Conn.- Ninth-seeded Binghamton defeated No. 8 UMBC, 73-67, in overtime in the first round of the America East Tournament.

UMBC rallied from 11 points down with less than eight minutes remaining and sent the game to overtime, but could not defeat Binghamton for the third time this season.

With the loss, the Retrievers finish the season at 4-26. Binghamton (2-28) advances to face No. 1 Stony Brook in the quarterfinals.

Junior guard Brian Neller (Red Bank, N.J.) led UMBC with 18 points. Sophomore forward Chase Plummer (Plainview, N.J.) added 17 points and four steals and junior guard Ryan Cook (Laurel, Md./Pallotti) added 15 points and a season-high 10 rebounds.

Binghamton freshman post Ben Dickinson led all scorers with 21 points and added 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocked shots. 

The Bearcats led, 55-44, with 7:58 remaining, but the Retrievers outscored Binghamton, 14-3 down the stretch. Trailing 58-57 inside the final minute, Plummer was fouled after collecting a steal on the defensive end, but converted only the first of two free throws to tie the score. After a Bearcat missed jumper, the Retrievers had the final chance in regulation, but a wild Jarell Lane shot was off the mark and a Jake Wasco tip attempt missed at the buzzer.

In overtime, Neller gave UMBC a 63-62 lead with a three-pointer with 3:32 remaining, but put-backs by Dickinson and Jabrille Williams on the next two possessions put the Bearcats ahead to stay.

UMBC did have one last chance, as the Retrievers got possession down by 70-67 with 34 seconds remaining. But a Joey Getz three-point attempt was off the mark with 20 ticks left and the Bearcats sealed the win with three free throws in the final seconds.

The Retrievers shot poorly from the field and the charity stripe throughout the 45 minutes of play. UMBC hit 26 of 75 shots from the floor (34.7 percent), just 6-of-26 from behind the arc and missed 7 of 16 free throw attempts.

Binghamton hit the same number of field goals (26) in 14 fewer attempts than UMBC (42.6%) and hit 17 of 25 shots from the line. They outscored UMBC, 20-15, in second-chance points.

The first half was tightly-contested with six ties and five lead changes in the first 20 minutes. With the score tied at 13-all midway through the stanza, Cook scored three consecutive field goals to give UMBC 19-13 advantage with 8:42 remaining. UMBC led, 23-17, but Binghamton countered with a 9-0 surge  and took 26-23 advantage at the 3:50 mark of the half. The Bearcats dominated in the paint and took 31-30 lead into intermission.

Wasco is the lone senior on the UMBC squad, while the Bearcat squad featured no seniors.