Score: Binghamton University 113, Elmira College 65
Records: Binghamton (9-6), Elmira (2-7)
Location: Dr. Bai Lee Court at the Events Center - Vestal, N.Y.

VESTAL, N.Y. -- The Elmira College men's basketball team wrapped up non-conference play Saturday afternoon on the road against Division I Binghamton University at the Events Center in Vestal, New York. The Soaring Eagles hung around with the Bearcats in the opening half, but the hosts pulled away in the second to secure a 113-65 victory to close out the 2017 portion of the season.

Junior forward Henry Cuffee '19 led the Soaring Eagles with 17 points off of 7-of-12 shooting from the floor. The Bel Air, Maryland, native was also tied with a game-high seven rebounds. Senior forward Hayden Harkins '18 finished with 13 points, nine of which were scored from beyond the arc, while second-year forward Kyle McCreery '20 netted nine points. As a team, the Purple and Gold shot 38.2 percent from the field (26-for-68) and 25 percent from 3-point range (7-of-28). Binghamton, on the other hand, recorded a 66.2 field-goal percentage (43-of-65) and made 52.4 percent of its 3-point attempts (11-of-21).

The Bearcats jumped out to a sizable lead in the early minutes on their home court, but the Soaring Eagles went on an 8-1 run in a span of 1:05 to cut the deficit down to 18-10 at the 15:10 mark of the opening half. The run was highlighted by two of Harkins' three first-half treys. Freshman Mason Weir '21 helped the Purple and Gold whittle the Binghamton lead down to just six points, 31-25, by scoring five consecutive points. He knocked down a 3-point field goal of his own, and after being fouled on another deep attempt, the 6-foot-1-inch rookie converted two of his three foul shots.

That was as close as EC would come to the lead for the remainder of the contest. Although the Bearcats began to distance themselves, second-year guard Jesse Adelson '20 made a highlight-reel play before the half. He fought through a pair of BU players to force a turnover ball and raced coast-to-coast to deposit the lay-up. Adelson was also fouled on the shot and completed the and-one as part of a mini 6-0 Elmira run.

Despite Elmira's relentless effort, Binghamton distanced itself in the second half, as the Bearcats shot at an exceptional 75.0 clip (21-of-28) in the final 20 minutes of regulation.

Justin Porrett '19, who finished with six points and a team-leading six assists, picked up two of those points with a lay-in following a nifty spin move to shake off his defender with 15:23 to play. Cuffee registered 10 of his team-high point total in the second half. He scored six in a row for Elmira in a span of 1:33, the latter making it a 91-61 score with just over six minutes remaining.

Although the non-league matchup was the 26th all-time between Elmira and Binghamton, it was the first since BU made the jump to Division I. A former member of the Division III State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC), the Bearcats - then known by the Colonials nickname, and the Soaring Eagles met annually from 1971-72 until 1988-89, and the two sides last competed on January 11, 1997.

News and Notes

• Elmira concludes the non-conference portion of the 2017-18 schedule with a 2-7 record.
• EC is still in search of its first road win this year after falling to 0-5 away from Speidel Gymnasium.
• Today's contest vs. Binghamton marks the first for the Soaring Eagles against a Division I opponent since December 6, 2006, when EC was defeated by Colgate.
• The Soaring Eagles still lead the all-time series against Binghamton, 16-10, a record that includes 25 games against the former Division III team between 1971-72 and 1996-97.
• Cuffee scored double-digit points for the eighth time this season.
• Harkins made multiple 3-point field goals for the seventh time in his senior campaign.
• McCreery's nine points are a new season high.
• Weir's 15 minutes of playing time, five points and two steals are season highs for the rookie.

Up Next
The Soaring Eagles will return to action on Tuesday, January 2, when Elmira travels to Hoboken, New Jersey, to take on the Ducks of the Stevens Institute of Technology. The 2017-18 Empire 8 Conference opener is scheduled to begin at 5:00 p.m.