Strong Guard Play leads Buffalo to win over Miami

Buffalo’s guards contributed 52 of the team’s 75 points, and in a game in which UB never trailed, the Bulls defeated the Miami (OH) Redhawks 75–67. Buffalo is now 6–2 for the season and 3–0 in the MAC.

Buffalo put up 22 points in the first quarter, and shot 57% from the floor, but Miami stayed right with Buffalo, tying the quarter on a jump shot by Miami guard Peyton Scott at the buzzer. Scott had 10 points in the first quarter.

But early in the second quarter, Scott picked up her second foul and went to the bench. And Miami’s offense struggled, Buffalo’s defense tightened, and Miami went 6 minutes into the second quarter without a basket. The Bulls put up another 22 points in the second quarter to lead 44–28.

A three pointer by Buffalo senior guard Hanna Hall would give the Bulls their biggest lead at 55–35 midway through the third quarter. Then Buffalo’s offense went flat and Miami played with more energy to cut the lead to 8 points at the end of the third quarter, 59–51.

Buffalo’s guards, and junior forward Keowa Walters, then took over in the final quarter and the Bulls held off the Miami comeback attempt. Walters had 8 of her 10 points in the fourth quarter, with four baskets all coming off of nice assists from UB guards. Walters would add a key blocked shot in the quarter.

Buffalo was led by sophomore guard Dyaisha Fair, who had 23 points, plus 7 assists and four steals. Junior guard Jazmine Young, playing in just her third game for Buffalo, added 12 points. Hall finished with 10 points plus 4 assists. Freshman guard Cheyenne McEvans had 7 points.

Buffalo’s top rebounder was sophomore forward Loren Christie, who had 9 rebounds, and Christie added 9 points and three blocked shots. However, it was not a good rebounding performance for the Bulls as a whole. Buffalo had only 29 rebounds compared to 41 for Miami (after removing “team rebounds”), and on the offensive boards, Buffalo had only 6, compared to Miami’s 15.

Notes:

• McEvans made a basket where the ball rolled along the top of the backboard, before dropping through the basket.
• The Bulls shot 43.3% from the field for the game, and 31.3% from three point range. Buffalo made their first 15 free throw attempts, something you would not expect from a team that came into the game shooting 67% for the season from the free throw line. They finished 18-for-20 from the line.
• Junior forward Ade Adeyeye, who suffered a shoulder injury a few games ago, continues to see very little playing time (7 minutes) and didn’t score. Senior forward Summer Hemphill, who was injured earlier in the season, was present but not in uniform.
• Freshman guard Casey Valenti-Paea, who just joined the team from Australia, was in uniform but did not appear in the game.