Bulls Defeat Bowling Green in Overtime Thriller

The UB Women’s Basketball Team defeated the Bowling Green Falcons in overtime, 69–68. This gives UB a sweep of their two games against Bowling Green, who will be the #1 seed in the upcoming MAC Tournament. The win clinches the #4 seed for UB in the MAC Tournament.

Buffalo opened a 20 point lead in the first half, and still led 48–34 at the end of three quarters. With the Bulls holding a 10 point lead in the fourth quarter with 6:50 left, Bowling Green applied pressure both offensively and defensively, forcing Buffalo into turnovers on five consecutive possessions (and 6 possessions out of 7), and the Falcons led 54–53 less than three minutes later.

From there, the lead bounced back and forth, with the Bulls going ahead 59–58 at 1:50 left on a layup from senior forward Summer Hemphill. Bowling Green would tie the quarter with a free throw at 1:36 left, but neither team would score again in the quarter. Buffalo’s last chance to break the tie came with 0:14 left when sophomore guard Dyaisha Fair drove down the lane with the shot clock running down; the BG defense collapsed towards Fair and she threw a wild pass out of bounds. A three point shot by Bowling Green at the buzzer was no good, and the put-back came after the buzzer had sounded.

The overtime period was also a back-and-forth affair, with Bowling Green taking the early lead, but Buffalo would come back to tie and then take the lead. A layup by BG’s Elissa Brett with 1:12 left gave the Falcons a 68–66 lead. One free throw by Buffalo freshman guard Cheyenne McEvans and then later a steal by McEvans which turned into a breakaway layup by Fair at 0:24 put the Bulls ahead by 1. Bowling Green missed a jumper and with 0:04 left, the rebound was called a jump ball. The last second shot by BG’s Lexi Fleming bounced off the rim and Buffalo had the victory.

Junior forward Keowa Walters led the Bulls with 18 points and tied for the team lead in rebounds with 5 (along with Hemphill and senior guard Hanna Hall, who each had 5 rebounds). Walters shot 9-for-12 from the field, mostly mid-range jumpers or layups, and also had two steals.

Fair had 16 points, playing all 45 minutes. McEvans had 13 points and Hemphill had 10.

Notes:

• The MAC Tournament will begin on Wednesday, March 10. Buffalo will face Kent State around 1:30pm at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, OH (ESPN+). Buffalo lost its only game against Kent State by 3 points.
• Buffalo only took five three point shots in the game, their season low in that category. The only three pointer made was by Hall, who on the first possession of the game, made a straight-on three, six seconds after the start of the game.
• Junior forward Ade Adeyeye again injured her shoulder, this time three minutes into the game, and did not return.