Friday, December 29th, 8:00 p.m. (et).

FACTS & STATS: Site: The Pit/Bob King Court (18,018) -- Albuquerque, New Mexico. Television: None. Home Record: Binghamton 3-2, Alcorn State 1-1. Away Record: Binghamton 3-2, Alcorn State 0-6. Neutral Record: Binghamton 0-1, Alcorn State 0-2. Conference Record: Binghamton 0-0, Alcorn State 0-0. Series Record: First-ever meeting.

GAME NOTES: Still winless away from home this season, the Alcorn State Braves go up against the Binghamton Bearcats in non-conference action at The Pit tonight in the consolation game of the Lobo Invitational in Albuquerque. Yesterday the Braves were crushed by host New Mexico in what turned into a 91-59 setback for the visitors. The loss was the eighth in as many tries on the road this season for Alcorn State, which beat Paul Quinn (98-83) back on December 9 for its only victory of the campaign thus far. As for the Bearcats, they were much more competitive in their matchup against the Pepperdine Waves on Thursday, bowing in a 90-83 decision. The loss snapped a three-game win streak for Binghamton and dropped the program to 6-5 on the season overall. With respect to the all-time series between these two schools on the hardwood, this represents the first-ever meeting.

Binghamton had four players score in double figures in the loss to Pepperdine last night, with Mike Gordon leading the way with his 22 points on 5-of-7 shooting behind the three-point line. Gordon also accounted for seven of the team's 15 assists and added all three of their blocked shots. Troy Hailey checked in with 19 points and Steve Proctor 11 and nine boards. Off the bench the Bearcats got a lift from Duane James who recorded a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 14 rebounds, and yet there was still no way to overcome 25 turnovers. Gordon, the fourth different player to lead the team in scoring in the last four games, is third on the squad in scoring overall with his 10.5 ppg, while Richard Forbes and Steve Proctor lead the way with 14.3 ppg and 12.9 ppg, respectively. Although Gordon is shooting just 35.2 percent from the field, which is a shade behind his 35.3 percent effort beyond the arc, he is first on the unit with 40 assists and 19 steals for a team scoring better than 70 ppg through 11 outings.

Delvin Thompson posted 17 points, shooting 3-of-8 behind the three-point line, but his effort was nowhere near what the Braves needed in order to stay competitive against New Mexico last night. Jarvis Williams added 14 points on 6-of-9 from the floor, while Juan Wyatt tacked on six and a team-high six rebounds in the onslaught. Considering the Lobos were without their top player in J.R. Giddens, the end result could have been a lot worse. Thompson, who has played in all but one of the team's 10 games, leads the squad wit his 16.6 ppg and is also first in terms of rebounding with close to five per outing. Except for back-to-back games against Florida International and Baylor in which he tallied just three and nine points, respectively, Thompson has been as consistent a player as Alcorn State has this season. Clifton Douglass is the second-best offensive option for the Braves much of the time, even though he posted just five points last night after hitting for double figures in his previous four games.

Obviously the Bearcats have some scoring punch which extends up and down the lineup, which is why the squad should have no trouble handling this weak Alcorn State group tonight.

Predicted Outcome

Binghamton 82, Alcorn State 68