WINS KEEP ON COMING FOR UB MEN, WOMEN
WINS KEEP ON COMING FOR UB MEN, WOMEN
Plus: A look at the 2 p.m. battle of MAC unbeatens—Buffalo women's basketball at Toledo
BUFFALO: MID-MAJOR HOOPS MECCA?
Image from ubbulls.com
Victories are falling for the Buffalo basketball programs like so many snowflakes falling from the sky: the men and women have combined to win nine games in a row, and Felisha Legette-Jack’s women’s squad has a chance to make it an even 10 this afternoon. Both teams are climbing the mid-major rankings, and both have the chance for signature league wins in the Glass City dead ahead.
Let’s get into it.
Williams, UB men ice visiting Kent State, hold Flashes to chilly night from the floor
Image from ubbulls.com
Should we call Buffalo’s senior swingman Jeenathan Williams (pictured above) the Ice Man? In the Bulls’ 64-51 win over Kent State at Alumni Arena on Friday night, Williams put on his typical display of cold-blooded shooting (nine-for-14 from the field, four-of-four from three), collecting 25 points coupled with 11 rebounds and six assists—all game-highs.
Like the Ice Man of old, Williams can connect from all three levels of the floor with a silky-smooth jumper and a knack for knocking down seemingly-impossible shots in coverage. He’s 58th in Division 1 in scoring, averaging 18.3 points per game, also good for fourth overall in the Mid-American Conference.
Williams’ performance on Friday was critical, as the Golden Flashes (7-7 overall, 4-4 in MAC play) held UB to nearly 20 points below its season scoring average. And while the Bulls (10-6, 4-2) maintained a double-digit lead for the better part of 18 minutes straddling the first and second periods, Kent State did manage to trim the deficit to five with just under four minutes remaining.
Williams, of course, responded by scoring the next five points to ice the game.
The Cold Blue Wall
Image from ubbulls.com
Postgame, the talk was defense—UB held the Flashes to 33 percent shooting from the field and under 20 percent from three. KSU’s 51 points were the fewest Buffalo’s allowed to a Division 1 team all season (D2 Point Park scored under 50 in a 94-49 loss to the Bulls at Alumni Arena on Nov. 29). Even D3 Medaille scored 54 in a preseason exhibition!
From UBBulls.com:
The 51 points allowed tonight were the fewest in a win to a Division I opponent since March 14, 2019, an 82-46 win over Akron. The 33% shooting was the lowest this year by a Buffalo opponent.
Over the last two games, UB opponents have shot just 8-of-46 (17.4%) from three point range and 40-of-117 (34.1%) overall.
UB outrebounded Kent State, 42-36, recorded 11 steals (three apiece for sophomore forward David Skogman and Williams, both pictured above, left to right), and outscored the Flashes in the paint, 36-26.
Former MAC Defensive Player of the Year Josh Mballa, still coming off the bench after missing two games with COVID, played 32 minutes, grabbed seven boards, swatted two shots, had a pair of steals, and was generally a menace on the defensive side of the floor.
“We didn’t play well enough against a good team,” Kent State Head Coach Rob Senderoff told Allan Moff of The Kent (Ohio) Record-Courier. “To come into Alumni Arena and get a win, we would have all had to play very well. We didn't do that tonight. No issue with team effort, but we didn't play well.”
Blue Chips
Image from ubbulls.com
The Bulls’ senior point guard Ronaldo Segu (pictured above) scored 15 points and added five assists. He’s the MAC leader in dimes, averaging 5.2 per game.
Skogman, who’d been a double-double machine over the past three games, scored nine points with six boards.
UB is now 115th in NCAA NET rankings, a jump from its previous spot at 122nd. Four consecutive wins helps. Kent State is 189th.
The Bulls are 104th in the KenPom ratings, and 24th nationally in adjusted tempo—they average nearly 72 possessions per 40 minutes.
Up next: Getting back to the top of the MAC
Image from utrockets.com
UB was picked to win the MAC this preseason. Buffalo’s currently tied for third at 4-2, thanks to a pair of disappointing double-digit losses to Miami (Ohio) and Akron.
But the ladder to the top is visible—wins in Tuesday’s road trip to face first-place Toledo (15-4, 7-1) and MAC-leading scorer Ryan Rollins (pictured above), as well as Friday’s home contest with one-loss Ohio, would catapult the Bulls into the conference lead.
Easier said than done! UT, ranked 67th in the NCAA NET, is undefeated at home this season. The Rockets (15-4, 7-1) smoked Ohio (14-3, 5-1), 87-69, in Athens last night, behind 26 points from Rollins—the 2020-21 MAC Freshman of the Year.
The Bobcats entered the game against Toledo sixth in the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25. The Rockets are 15th, and UB is 31th.
It’s a big one for Buffalo! The game is scheduled for Tuesday at 7 p.m. in UT’s Savage Arena. Watch the contest on ESPN+.
Working class heroes show up for Bulls in Akron blowout
Image from ubbulls.com
We often write of Bulls’ sophomore guard Dyaisha Fair’s exploits, and rightfully so—Fair was named to the Becky Hammon Award midseason watch list, an award given to the top mid-major player in the country. She’s one of the best around, regardless of school size.
From UBBulls.com:
The Rochester, NY native is currently ranked fifth in the nation in scoring (23.5 ppg) while also averaging 4.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 2.1 steals per game. She also ranks in the top 20 nationally in field goals made (116), three-point field goals made (46), three-point field goals made per game (3.3), assist to turnover ratio (+2.6) and final points (333).
Fair scored 20 points with seven rebounds and three assists in Wednesday’s 76-59 home win over Akron, UB’s fifth in a row. The Bulls (11-4, 5-0) are undefeated in eight games at Alumni Arena this season.
We also tend to give freshman swing Georgia Woolley a fair amount of run, and why not? She’s a 5’11 Australian scoring machine who averaged more than 40 points a game as a Brisbane high schooler.
Woolley’s shooting over 41 percent from three since Dec. 1 and rattled in 17 points against the Zips, a game in which she showcased her ability to get to the rim. Woolley’s scored in double figures in nine of the last 10 games. Buffalo is 8-2 over that stretch.
Winning the battle under the basket is winning Bulls basketball
Image from ubbulls.com
The real story from the Akron win, however, was the play of the less-heralded grinders—frontcourt players who’ve battled in the trenches this past week against tough-rebounding Kent State on Monday, and the Zips’ bruising forward Jordyn Dawson on Wednesday. The Bulls won both contests.
Senior forward Adebola Adeyeye (pictured below the headline) was excellent against Akron, shooting eight-of-10 from the floor for 16 points while grabbing 10 rebounds for her second double-double of the season (the first came against the AP Top 25’s 14th-ranked Oklahoma). Adeyeye’s emotion—flexing after big baskets, quickly recognizing teammates after key plays—added welcome joy to UB’s often stoic on-court demeanor.
Junior forward Loren Christie (pictured above) posted her own double-double with 11 points and 13 boards. It was Christie’s first double-double of the season and marked the third consecutive game in which she played 20 minutes or more off the bench. Christie also showed off some range, shooting away from the basket, and was a steadying force in the paint defensively.
Summer Hemphill, who will leave UB as one of the women’s program legends, perhaps can’t be counted among the “less heralded.” On Wednesday, however, she found ways to contribute when the buckets weren’t falling—that’s what true grinders do. Hemphill struggled from the floor for the second consecutive game, but filled her lunch pail with nine rebounds, eight points, five assists, four steals, and two blocks.
Want more effort stats? From UBBulls.com:
The Bulls dominated the glass 50-31 and, in the paint, where UB scored 52 points. The 50 rebounds and 52 paint points are the second-most by Buffalo this season. UB also scored 23 points off 16 Akron turnovers and dominated the fastbreak category, outscoring the Zips 19-2 in transition. Buffalo is now a perfect 56-0 over the last five plus seasons when holding their opponent to 59 points or less.
A Savage road ahead: Today’s tough trip to Toledo
Image from utrockets.com
What’s next? A mid-major showdown at Toledo (13-3, 7-0) this afternoon. Buffalo is currently 56th in NCAA NET rankings, and the Rockets are 62nd. UB is 14th in the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25, and UT is 25th. Both are undefeated in MAC play.
Toledo is tops in the league in scoring defense (57.2 points per game), while the Bulls lead in scoring offense (77.3 points per game).
The Rockets’ men and women’s combined 13-1 start to their respective MAC basketball seasons is the best in school history.
From UTRockets.com:
The Rockets are coming off a thrilling, come-from-behind victory at Ball State on Wednesday. Trailing by as many as 15 points, Toledo came back to win, 58-55, to remain undefeated in MAC play…
Defense has been a strength for the Rockets this season, as they have led the MAC in scoring defense (57.2) and field goal percentage defense (34.8%) for much of the season. UT ranks 18th in the nation in field goal percentage defense, and opposing teams have shot above 40% from the field just once…
Sophia Wiard led the MAC in assist/turnover ratio last season and is leading the league again this season (2.45). Quinesha Lockett (pictured above) sits eighth in the MAC in scoring (17.8 PPG). Lockett has scored in double figures in 14 of 16 games this season and has cracked 20 points eight times. She is one of four players in the MAC to have at least eight 20-point performances.
Game time is 2 p.m. at Toledo’s Savage Arena. Expect it to be rowdy—the Rockets are in the top 25 in the nation in attendance. Tune in on ESPN+.