Bowling Green Falcons at Buffalo Bulls Men's Basketball Recap: Hamilton surges, Bearden returns in 88-74 win

Lamonte Bearden returned from suspension, though not to the starting lineup, and Blake Hamilton scored a career-high 24 points in a 88-74 win that put Buffalo back on the right track over Bowling Green Saturday afternoon.

UB trailed 42-38 at the half after leading through the first ten minutes, and overcame a 14-2 run before a halftime thanks to a 50-point second half during which Hamilton and Bearden combined for 27 points, 7 assists, and an 8-9 performance from the line.

Those stats proved key for Buffalo over the full 40, as UB overcame a 54% shooting performance from the visitors thanks to 10 steals, 18 Falcon turnovers, and 33 trips to the line, from which the Bulls generated 25 points. Hamilton was the game's leading scorer and only BG's Spencer Parker (21) outscored Bearden among everyone else.

Though UB didn't retake the lead until six minutes remained, it came as part of a big 16-0 run that ballooned to 23-4 and gave the Bulls a double digit lead inside of two minutes.

We'll have more in a takeaways post tomorrow, while the Bulls will remain home for a Tuesday night game against Kent State, critical for tiebreaker concerns as the MAC Tournament approaches.