UMBC (9-7, 2-1 AE) at Binghamton (4-15, 0-4 AE) | Monday, Jan. 19, 2:00 p.m. | Vestal, N.Y. (Dr. Bai Lee Court | Watch | International Feed | Live Stats | Game Notes 

RETRIEVER TIP-OFF    

• The Retrievers are competing in their 58th season as well as their 40th season of D1 hoops in Baltimore.
• UMBC has a record of 678-957 (.414) all-time.
• The Retrievers are 479-684 (.412) at the DI level
• The Retrievers are 3-4 on the road this season.
• UMBC is 3-0 in games decided by two points or less this season.
• The Dawgs are 5-5 in games decided by single figures.
• UMBC owns the second highest winning percentage in the America East (.562).
• The Retrievers are second in the league with a +3.0 scoring margin.
• The Dawgs lead the AE with a .360 three-point shooting percentage.
• UMBC is tied with Vermont for the league-lead with 26.7 defensive rebounds per game.
• The Retrievers have outscored their three America East opponents by a combined total of 47-19 from the free throw line
• Junior guard Jah'Likai King is 3rd in the league in scoring at 14.7 ppg. and graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr is 7th (13.4 ppg.).
• Armstrong is second in the conference in 3-point shooting accuracy (.410) and leads the league in 3's per game (3.0, 25th NCAA). He drilled his 200th career triple last Thursday at Bryant.
• Junior guard Ace Valentine leads the conference with a 3.2 assist/turnover ratio. He recorded his 250th career assist at Bryant on Thursday evening.

 LAST TIME OUT - RETRIEVERS FALL IN OVERTIME AT BRYANT

• UMBC dropped its first America East Conference contest of the season after falling to the Bryant Bulldogs in overtime, 79-74, on Thursday evening at the Chace Athletic Center. The loss also stopped UMBC's three-game win streak.
• Graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr. led four Retrievers in double-digits in scoring with 20 points, including 17 in the second half. Armstrong, who buried his 200th career 3-pointer, connected on five treys on the evening and added five rebounds, four assists, and three steals. Sophomore forward Caden Diggs sparked the Retrievers with 14 points off the bench, while junior forward Jose Roberto Tanchyn added 13 points in his first start at UMBC.  Junior guard Jah'Likai King contributed 12 points, and classmate Ace Valentine handed out a team-high six assists, including the 250th of his career.
• The Retrievers (9-7, 2-1 AE) trailed 33-26 at halftime as the Bulldogs held UMBC to just 33.3 shooting (8-for-24) in the opening twenty minutes.
• Bryant (6-12, 2-2 AE) increased their lead to 37-29 with 17:12 left in the second half, but the Retrievers went on a 13-3 run to take a 42-40 edge with 14 minutes left. Armstrong hit three treys during the stretch, including a bomb from the wing after a turnover to knot the score. Diggs then provided the visitors with the lead with a driving layup following another turnover.
• The Retrievers continued to widen their lead, taking an eight-point advantage on two occasions, the last one coming at 58-50 with 8:36 remaining after a trifecta by fifth-year guard Cougar Downing.
• The Bulldogs answered with nine consecutive points to reclaim a 59-58 edge at the 6:26 mark following a layup by Ashley Simms II (16 points).
• The hosts led 63-60 with four minutes remaining, but Valentine converted a layup, and Diggs hit two free throws to put the Retrievers back on top, 64-63 with 3:09 remaining. Bryant answered with a second-chance tip-in layup to grab a 65-64 edge with 2:12 left, but Armstrong Jr. would eventually complete an and-one layup to stake UMBC to a 67-65 lead with fifty-two ticks left.
• Bryant forced overtime on a driving layup by Timofei Rudovskii (22 points) with thirty-two seconds left. UMBC had an opportunity to win the game in regulation, but Armstrong Jr. was called for a traveling violation with a second left.
• UMBC struggled in overtime as they connected on just 2-of-6 shots, including 0-for-4 from behind the arc. Diggs hit a jumper in the lane to tie the game at 69-all with 4:01 left, but Bryant went on a 6-1 spurt and never looked back.

  ABOUT BINGHAMTON

• The Bearcats have lost nine of their last 10 contests and are 0-4 in the America East after falling at UAlbany on Thursday evening.
• Binghamton is coming off a 69-53 loss at UAlbany last Thursday. Wes Peterson, Jr., led the Bearcats with 13 points, the second game in a row he has scored that many. Jeremiah Quigley added 10 points, and Zyier Beverly grabbed six rebounds while blocking a game-high three shots.
• Binghamton, who is 0-9 on the road, is second to last on the circuit with a -7.9 scoring margin this season. (67.1 - 75.0).
• The Bearcats lead the AE with a .746 team free throw percentage. 
• Junior point guard Jeremiah Quigley continues to lead the America East in assists (6.2/game) and ranks sixth in scoring (13.7 ppg.). Quigley ranks 24th in the country in assists and has registered 6+ assists 10 times this season. 
• Led by Quigley (79 makes, 75%), Binghamton is getting to the free throw line and converting points. The Bearcats lead the entire nation in percentage of points from free throws with 27.5% of their points coming at the line. As a team, Bing leads the America East in free throw makes (332) and percentage (75%). 

SERIES HISTORY WITH BINGHAMTON

• UMBC leads, 26-22
• The Retrievers are 10-12 in Vestal.
• The teams have split the season series in each of the last three years, with the road team winning half the games. The home team won both games last year.
• Binghamton won 87-82 in the AE opener last Jan. 4 in Vestal before UMBC countered five weeks later in Baltimore 81-77.
• In that last meeting, visiting Binghamton closed the game with a furious 21-8 run but came up short 81-77 at The Peake. Down 73-56 with 4:13 left, the Bearcats stormed back and pulled to within three four different times in the final 34 seconds. but the Retrievers made eight free throws in the final minute to hang on to gain a season split. Each team scored 50 points in the free-flowing second half. Last 5 meetings have been decided by average of just 5 points

 PLAY THAT HIT AGAIN MR. DJ

• DJ Armstrong's trey against Morgan State (11/11) was the first time UMBC hit a game-winner in the final five seconds since Craig Beaudion II. (11/20/22 vs. Central Conn.).
• Armstrong Jr. followed that up with a buzzer-beater to defeat Wagner in overtime on Nov. 16.
• Armstrong Jr. was named the America East Co-Player of the Week on Nov. 17.
• Armstrong Jr. was featured on #SCTop10 twice. Teammate Jah'Likai King also made the list after his crossover move and hoop against Penn State York.
• He also came up clutch by hitting two free thows in a one-and-one situation with 0.9 on the clock in the 75-74 win over UNH (1/10).
• DJ also enjoyed a career game at Coppin State with 31 points on 10-of-16 shooting. He drilled a career-best eight treys in 14 tries.
• Armstrong Jr. is 7th in the America East in scoring (13.4 ppg.) and is first in 3s per game (3.0). He's also second on the the circuit in 3-point field goal percentage (.410).

 
THE KING HITS A GRAND; NAMED AE PLAYER OF WEEK

• Jah'Likai King went over the 1,000 mark for his career at GW on November 18.  King scored 934 points in his first two seasons at New Haven (DII) before coming to Baltimore this season.
• King was named AE Player of the Week on December 8. The Newburg, New York native averaged 19.5 points while shooting an impressive 54% from the field during two road games last week against Georgetown and Bucknell.
• King started the week by scoring 19 points in a loss to Georgetown on Wednesday and followed it up with 20 points in a victory over Bucknell on Saturday. After trailing 26-25 at halftime against the Bison, UMBC opened the second half with a 14-6 run, establishing their largest lead of the game at 39-32 with 14:11 remaining. King contributed eight points during this crucial stretch.
• Currently, King leads the team in scoring with an average of 14.7 points per game, ranking third in the league. He is also 26th in the league in rebounding, averaging 4.1 caroms per game and is 19th in steals (1.0).

 ACE IN THE HOLE

• Guard Ace Valentine continues to play a key role on both ends of the floor.
• Valentine leads the conference and is 42nd in the nation in assist/turnover ratio (3.2) and is third in the AE in assists per game (4.7).
• The junior has shot the ball well from behind the arc going 21-for-51 (.412) and is 58-of-124 overall (.468).
• He dished his 250th career assist in the loss to Bryant last Thursday.

 NOT JOSHING AROUND

• Graduate student forward Josh Odunowo has been a model of consistency throughout this first two seasons as a Retriever.
• Odunowo owns a .500 field goal percentage this year and is a career .559 shooter.
• Odunowo is also 6th in the league in rebounding at 5.5 per game.

 CAN YOU DIG IT?

• Sophomore forward Caden Diggs erupted for a career-high 19 points on 7-for-9 shooting in 24 minutes off the bench against Buffalo. Diggs also knocked down a career-best three 3-pointers.
• Diggs recorded his first career double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds earlier in the season against Wagner.
• Diggs has reached double-figures in scoring in five of his last seven contests and is averaging 10.6 points per game during the stretch.

 MILESTONE WATCH   
1200 career points, Jah'Likai King (1,155)
250 career assists, Jah'Likai King (208)
300 career rebounds, Jah'Likai King (285)
900 career points, Josh Odunowo (850)
500 career rebounds, Josh Odunowo (473)
100 career blocks, Josh Odunowo (77)
600 career points, Ace Valentine, (586)
300 career assists, Ace Valentine (255)
500 career rebounds, Paul Greene (474)
550 career points, Paul Greene (503)
900 career points, DJ Armstrong Jr. (872)
225 career 3-pointers, DJ Armstrong Jr. (202)