Buffalo Bulls Men’s Basketball Game Preview: Bowling Green Falcons

The Buffalo Bulls are back in action one last time this regular season, taking on the Bowling Green Falcons on ESPNU. For the first time in their history, the Bulls are the number one seed in the MAC tournament, and can win the MAC regular season title outright with a win tonight! With locking up the number one seed, the Bulls are assured at worst an NIT bid for postseason play. Obviously the Bulls have their minds set on the NCAA Tournament, and the momentum to get there starts tonight.

The Bulls need to treat tonight like it’s a MAC tournament game, and get a victory to build momentum going in to Cleveland. There would be nothing wrong with a close game tonight, as it could keep the Bulls attention sharp going in to the most important part of the season. If Buffalo is able to limit their turnovers in transition early, then I think their road jitters will slip away.

As for BGSU, we saw what they like to do just two weeks ago in Alumni Arena. The Falcons love to get the ball inside, and get to the free throw line. While they had a tough night shooting the three ball, they can still be deadly from deep. The Falcons are also a good second half comeback team, so the Bulls will need to be sharp for 40 minutes to secure the win. Let’s take a look at some other factors to look at going in to tonight’s game.

What to Watch For

Davonta Jordan

Jordan has been struggling recently, and frankly just looked off. He’s still getting to the rim, but either not finishing, or forcing a pass in traffic. He will be a crucial part to the Bulls success in Cleveland, and hopefully he starts to slow himself down a little, and gets under control while driving.

CJ Massinburg

Massinburg was seemingly in a slump before the Akron game, in which he just wasn’t hitting the big shots we’ve seen him make for years. He seemed to shake out of it in the second half of last game, and hopefully he stays hot heading in to the tournament.

Focus

The Bulls won the MAC title last game, so how focused will they be. Hopefully the team stays locked in, knowing they still have a big mountain to climb going forward. I would love to see the Bulls get out to a fast start, and not look back the entire game.

Final Thoughts

For a game that means nothing, it also means everything at the same time. While seeding for UB is determined already, a loss here will feel like the Bulls have nothing going for them next week. Winning your final three games of the season before the tournament is huge, and hopefully they are able to ride that wave all the way to selection Sunday. Make sure you tune in to tonight’s game on ESPNU, and as always, go Bulls!