#2 UB Women’s Basketball defeats #6 Western Michigan, 85-53, advances to MAC Championship

Buffalo Bulls Women’s Basketball (27-4, 16-2 MAC Reg. Season) booked another night’s stay in Cleveland after defeating the #6 Western Michigan Broncos (18-14, 9-9 MAC Reg. Season) on Friday, 85-53. The win gives UB the opportunity to compete for a second-ever Mid-American Conference title.

As expected, the Broncos played a good chunk of this game within striking distance of the Bulls. Although UB’s stars of Cierra Dillard, Stephanie Reid, and Cassie Oursler were hitting shots, UB struggled to put a cap on the front court. Western Michigan’s Breanna Mobley started the 7-11 from the field and wasn’t cooling down at all.

Mobley’s perseverance in the first half paid off, keeping the Broncos deficit to five points with just a couple minutes before each side headed to the locker room. But, UB took full advantage of the final minutes—with buckets from Summer Hemphill, Katherine Ups, and Brittany Morrison.

Although WMU kept it close for twenty minutes, the wheels started coming off as the game wore on. Western’s Deja Wimby found herself collecting a fourth foul and UB started airing the Cierra Dillard and Autumn Jones show. The duo put together an outstanding 17-point effort in the third quarter alone.

With ten minutes to go, UB had an enormous 59-36 lead over the Broncos, giving the Bulls’ starters plenty of time to rest as the lead continued to climb.

When it was all said and done, Dillard finished atop the UB stat column. The junior grabbed 17 points, dished six assists, and forced six turnovers. Reid had a solid 5-11 shooting day, ultimately finishing with 12 points. Jones rounded out the double-figures club with 11.

UB will now spend the rest of the night gearing up for their second MAC Championship Game in three years. At 11:00 AM tomorrow, the Bulls will face the #1 Central Michigan Chippewas in a battle between two of the best mid-major basketball teams in the country. Tomorrow’s game will also be the first time the Women’s title game is televised nationally thanks to CBS Sports Network.

Go Bulls.