Big Second Half Gives UB Victory over James Madison

The UB Women’s Basketball team struggled through a first half where they couldn’t get their offense going, and trailed James Madison 26–19. But led by sophomore guard Cheyenne McEvans and junior guard Dyaisha Fair, the Bulls turned on the scoring in the second half and turned up the defense in the second half, outscoring James Madison 43–19, and came away with their third victory of the year. Buffalo’s record is now 3–2. #One4Mon

Buffalo shot only 33.3% in the first half, which included 1-for-11 from downtown. If there was any positive about this half, it was the Bulls defense, which held JMU to 30.8% shooting, including 1-for-9 from beyond the arc. Buffalo also caused 12 JMU turnovers in the first half.

The Dukes pushed their lead to 9 early in the third quarter, but then Fair took over. She single-handedly outscored James Madison 10–0 in less than 4 minutes of game clock time, to give Buffalo the lead. Fair would add a three-pointer later in the quarter and McEvans chipped in two baskets, and Buffalo took a 40–36 lead into the fourth quarter.

The Bulls’ defense continued to stifle the Dukes, and Buffalo outscored JMU 22–9 in the fourth quarter to win the game going away. McEvans had a huge quarter, sparking a number of UB fast break baskets with her defense. McEvans picked up the Play of the Game™ when she blocked a shot, grabbed the loose ball, drove the length of the court and with a hesitation move, scored a layup and got fouled. Later, McEvans picked up another Play of the Game™ with a steal that turned into a fast break; as McEvans drove down the lane she made a behind the back bounce pass to senior guard Jazmine Young for a layup.

Fair led the Bulls with 26 points, including 4 three-pointers. She also had 4 steals. McEvans finished with 14 points, 6 assists, 4 steals and 9 rebounds. Young had 11 points. Super-senior forward Summer Hemphill led the team in rebounds with 13, and picked up a career high 6 assists. Senior forward Ade Adeyeye had 9 rebounds.

Notes:

• It was Monika Šimková day for the Bulls, wearing #One4Mon t-shirts during the pre-game warmups. Šimková is the former UB volleyball player who had both legs amputated before the season.
• Although Fair is usually one of the team’s best rebounders, she picked up zero rebounds in this game.
• Buffalo’s next game is Wednesday, December 1 when they host Niagara at Alumni Arena at 7pm (ESPN3).