Binghamton Bearcats Face Monmouth and King Rice

When the Binghamton Bearcats men's basketball team travels to Monmouth to play the Hawks on Saturday night at 7 (6:45 airtime on News Radio 1290 WNBF) a familiar face will be patrolling the sidelines for the home team.  Binghamton native King Rice is in his second season as head coach at Monmouth University.  Rice was a standout on Binghamton High School's great teams in the mid 1980's.

He had many of the nation's top college coaches recruit him.  Jim Boeheim and Dean Smith came to Binghamton to watch him play.  Smith, the legendary coach of the University of North Carolina, won the recruiting battle.  Rice went on to star for the Tar Heels from 1988-91.  In the 1990-91 season he helped lead his team to a 29-6 record and a trip to the NCAA Final Four.  He finished his career as the Tar Heels point guard ranked third on the school's all-time assist list.

So far this season Monmouth is 4-6 and 0-2 in MAAC Conference play.  The Hawks have won three of their last five games and defeated St. Francis of Brooklyn in their last game 73-58.  The Bearcats head into action Saturday with a 2-7 slate and have not played since losing to Syracuse in the Carrier Dome last Saturday.