Max Zegarowski scores 20 for the second time this season in home loss at Merkert Gym 

EASTON, Mass. (December 2, 2023) – Stonehill College men's basketball fell to Binghamton University Saturday afternoon, 69-54, at Merkert Gymnasium in a non-conference matchup.

LEADERS

• Graduate student Max Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) led Stonehill with 20 points, playing a game-high 39 minutes while grabbing seven rebounds.
• Sophomore Tony Felder (Brockton, Mass.) led the Skyhawks from beyond the arc, netting three shots from long range en route to 19 points.
• Fifth-year Pano Pavlidis (Queens, N.Y.) carried Stonehill on the glass, corralling eight rebounds, and led the team with four assists.
• Tymu Chenery was the game's leading scorer, tallying 22 points, and blocking five shots for Binghamton.
• Gavin Walsh notched a game-high 10 rebounds for the Bearcats while Symir Torrence dished out eight assists to lead both teams.

FIRST HALF

• Senior Jackson Benigni (East Hampton, Conn.) ripped the ball away from a Binghamton ball-handler and freshman Louie Semona (Cincinnati, Ohio) grabbed the loose ball and tossed it ahead to Benigni for the fast-break layup.
• The Skyhawks doubled their lead to four points when Zegarowski drove hard to the rim, finishing a layup to make it 8-4 as Stonehill began the game 3-4 from the field.
• A layup from Pavlidis put the Skyhawks ahead 15-9 but the Bearcats responded with an 8-0 run to take their first lead of the game with 10:28 remaining in the half.
• Binghamton's momentum carried over for the next four minutes as they built a 10-point advantage, 27-17, making four straight baskets during the run.
• Stonehill picked it up on the defensive end as the Bearcats missed their next seven shots while Zegarowski scored seven straight points to bring the Skyhawks within three points as Binghamton led 27-24 with 3:19 left to play in the half.
• A mid-range jumper and a three-point play from the Bearcats put them back up by eight, 32-24, with less than two minutes to go until halftime.
• Felder sunk a pair of free throws for the final points of the half as Stonehill shot 10-34 (29.4%) while Binghamton was 14-34 (41.2%) from the floor, leading 32-26 at the break.

SECOND HALF

• Semona opened the second half scoring when Pavlidis hit the freshman on a backdoor cut to the basket for a driving layup.
• Binghamton scored the next six points to go back up by double-digits, leading 38-28.
• Stonehill countered with a 5-0 run to trim its deficit in half as Felder knocked down a three-pointer and Zegarowski put in two free throws.
• The Bearcats rattled off 10 of the next 12 points as Binghamton led 48-35 with 14:09 left to play.
• BU had its largest lead of the game, 53-38, on the heels of two different three-point plays from Symir Torrence and Tymu Chenery.
• Benigni and Felder each netted three-pointers followed by a driving layup from Benigni brought the Skyhawks within eight, 56-48, with just over 10 minutes remaining in the game.
• A pair of long-range baskets from Chris Walker put Binghamton back up by 14 with five minutes left until the final buzzer.
• Felder scored the next five points as Stonehill trailed by nine, 66-57, but the Bearcats never let the Skyhawks back in it, winning the game 79-64.
• Binghamton shot 45.9% (28-61) from the field and won the rebound battle 46-31. Stonehill shot the ball at a 37.1% (23-62) clip and hit on 34.8% (8-23) of their three-point attempts.

NOTEWORTHY

• Stonehill is now 1-2 all-time against Binghamton, its lone win coming in last season's matchup in Vestal, N.Y.
• This was the first meeting between the two teams at Merkert Gym and the Skyhawks have now lost back-to-back games against America East opponents after dropping Wednesday's game against UMass Lowell.
• The Skyhawks recorded a season-high five blocks for the second consecutive game.
• Pavlidis notched a season-high eight rebounds for the second consecutive game, a mark he reached seven times a season ago at Hartford. He also set a new season-high and matched his career high with four assists.
• Zegarowski has now scored at least seven points in eight of the first nine games this year, the most such games for Stonehill.
• Zegarowski has also scored 15+ points in four of the past five games while he reached the 20-point mark for the second time this season.
• Benigni reached double-figures for the fifth straight game for a team-high seventh time this season.
• Felder has scored 11+ points in six straight games as he improves his season average to 12.6ppg.

UP NEXT

• Stonehill heads back on the road to take on Stony Brook at Island Federal Arena for a 6:31 p.m. tip-off on Wednesday, Dec. 6.

Tickets for the 2023-24 men's and women's basketball season are on sale now and can be purchased at stonehillskyhawks.com/tickets. Season ticket options are available including a men's and women's combination pass, valid for all 27 home games this year.

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