University at Buffalo
18-11
(12) Toledo
4-28
Bulls Cruise Past Toledo in MAC Tournament First Round
3/7/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
BUFFALO, NY – The University at Buffalo men's basketball team cruised past Toledo, 72-54, in the opening round of the FirstEnergy Mid-American Conference Tournament at Alumni Arena on Sunday afternoon. The Bulls advance to Cleveland and will play Miami (OH) on Thursday night at 9:00 pm at Quicken Loans Arena.
The fifth-seeded Bulls (18-11) jumped out to a 7-0 lead and never
looked back. A young Toledo squad, the 12th seed, hung tough early
and a three-pointer by Jake Barnett cut the UB lead to 14-11 with
10:11 left in the first half. Mitchell Watt slammed home a missed
jump shot and Rodney Pierce came up with a steal and a layup in the
closing seconds of the first half to extend the Buffalo lead to
35-22 at the break.
The UB lead remained in double-digits for the majority of the
second half. Max Boudreau scored a 14 of his season-high 18 in the
second half by knocking down a bevy of mid-range jump shots. The
senior forward shot 8-of-10 from the field. His jumper with 5:53
remaining put the Bulls ahead 62-39. The 23-point advantage was the
Bulls' largest of the afternoon.
Jawaan Alston earned his first start of the season after Titus Robinson was held out of the starting lineup with a minor injury.
The junior forward responded with a career-high 12 rebounds to go
along with four points and three assists. He helped the Bulls
command the rebounding edge, 39-26. The Bulls had 15 offensive
rebounds and scored 16 second chance points.
The Bulls also capitalized defensively as they scored 25 points off
12 Toledo turnovers. Calvin Betts had three steals to go along with
his 13 points and five rebounds.
Sean Smiley also scored 13 points, including three
three-pointers.
John Boyer, the nation's leader in assist-to-turnover ratio,
cushioned his lead on Sunday afternoon with eight assists to zero
turnovers.
The Bulls' 18-point victory was their largest ever in a MAC
Tournament game.
"I think our focus defensively, positioning wise, was pretty good,"
head coach Reggie Witherspon said. "I think our determination was
pretty good and it led to us rebounding the ball pretty well. Our
team effort and focus was better today and I'm hoping we can
improve on it."
Buffalo has advanced to the quarterfinals and will play
fourth-seeded Miami (OH) on Thursday night in the 9:00 pm game. The
teams split the season series with each team winning on its home
court.
