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University at Buffalo
10-6, 3-2MAC
Ohio
10-9, 1-4MAC
Bulls Stumble at Ohio
1/23/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
ATHENS, OH - For the second straight Mid-American Conference
road game, the University at Buffalo men's basketball team
ran into a red-hot shooting team, this time dropping a 99-77
decision to Ohio University in the Convocation Center before 10,689
fans.
Ohio (10-9) shot 52 percent for the game from the field and 50
percent (11-of-22) from beyond the arc. The Bulls lost despite
hitting 13 three-point field goals, including a career-high six by
senior point guard John Boyer, who led the Bulls with a career-best
20 points.
The Bobcats, who led by 16 at halftime, took full control of the
game early in the second half by connecting on seven of their first
eight shots to open up the biggest lead of the game at 66-41 at the
16:17 mark.
Ohio continued to lead comfortably for most of the second half, but
after pulling ahead 80-60 with 9:47 remaining, Buffalo went on an
8-0 run, behind treys by Boyer and senior Sean Smiley (18 points)
to cut the deficit to 80-68 with 9:08 left. However, a trifecta by
Ohio's Tommy Freeman, who had a game-high 27 points, broke
the run and Ohio never let the Bulls any closer the rest of the
game.
Both teams struggled to find any offensive rhythm early in the game
as the Bulls led 6-4 at the first media timeout on three points
apiece by Rodney Pierce and Calvin Betts.
Freshman point guard D.J. Cooper (nine points, 11 assists) spurred
an 8-0 Bobcat run, coming off the bench to score seven points as
Ohio took a 16-8 lead with 12:25 to go in the first. UB's
Smiley ended that run with his first trifecta of the game. Ohio
used an 11-2 run to open up the half's biggest lead at 33-22
with 4:56 left in the half, forcing Buffalo to use its first
timeout.
After the Bulls had trimmed the lead to 38-31 on a Smiley trey and
a Pierce bucket, Freeman hit back-to-back long three-point shots to
give OU a 44-31 lead with 1:15 left in the half. Ohio went to
halftime with a 47-31 lead – its biggest of the half –
after a free throw and an Ivo Baltic lay-in with a second left on
the clock.
The Bulls also got 17 points, seven rebounds and four assists from
Pierce. Buffalo hosts Ball State on Thursday at 7:00 pm at Alumni
Arena.
