BUFFALO, NY - The University at Buffalo men's basketball
team earned its second straight road win with a 78-69 overtime
victory at Towson on Saturday afternoon. The Bulls shot nearly 60
percent from the field in the second half and overtime to pull out
the win.
Buffalo (2-1) had four players score in double-figures led by
Rodney Pierce who scored 18. Calvin Betts earned his first
double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Mitchell Watt added 12 points and Jawaan Alston had his second
strong game in a row with 11 points.
John Boyer had one of the finest all-around games of his career
with five points, eight rebounds and a career-best 12 assists. His
12 assists tied for the 10th for a single game in school
history.
Coming off an 11-point win against Miami (OH), Towson (1-1) looked
good early and jumped out to an 11-point lead late in the first
half and seemed comfortably ahead at the half.
The Bulls looked like a different team in the second half. Buffalo
opened the stanza on an 11-0 scoring run to turn a six-point
halftime deficit into a 38-35 lead with 16:45 remaining. A jumper
by Alston built the UB lead to 56-47 with 9:23 left. However, the
Tigers hit three straight three-pointers to knot the game at 56
with 6:46 remaining.
The Bulls responded with a 7-0 run of their own to regain a 63-56
advantage. Towson rallied and outscored the Bulls, 7-0, over the
final two minutes and a three-pointer by Tony Franklin tied the
game at 65 with 21 seconds remaining. Pierce had a chance to win it
for the Bulls in regulation, but his driving layup was blocked and
the game went to overtime.
Calvin Betts Buffalo remained poised in the extra session and after
missing its first shot, did not miss again. A jumper in the lane by
Boyer put the Bulls ahead to stay, 69-68, with 3:25 left in
overtime. It ignited an 11-1 scoring run to end the game. The Bulls
dominated the play inside, outscoring the Tigers 38-8 in the paint.
Buffalo also outrebounded Towson, 46-42.
"The second half we started finding our rhythm," head
coach Reggie Witherspoon said. "By the end of the game we
really ran our offense pretty well. We got a little jittery and a
little submissive when we had the lead. But for the most part, we
ran our offense well through the end of the game."
Buffalo will return home to face Canisius on Tuesday night.