14-6, 5-3MAC
Kent State
15-6, 6-2MAC
Bulls Cruise To Victory In Front Of Record-Setting Crowd
1/30/2015 12:00:00β―AM | Men's Basketball
BUFFALO, NY – Playing in front of the largest crowd at Alumni Arena in over four years, the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, men's basketball teams rolled to an 80-55 win over Kent State, which was televised nationally on ESPNU. The attendance of 5,797 was the largest to see a UB game since December 30, 2010 against #16 BYU. With the win, the Bulls improve to 8-0 at Alumni Arena as well as 14-6 on the season and 5-3 in MAC play.
The Golden Flashes scored the first six points of the game, but then senior Xavier Ford ignited a 17-2 run over the next six minutes. Ford and sophomore Shannon Evans combined to score the first 12 points of the game and the Bulls never trailed again. Kent State pulled within four at 19-15, but UB answered with 20-5 run as they ran their first half lead to 39-20 with 3:19 left.
UB got a pair of three pointers from Evans and junior Jarryn Skeete as well as a huge put back dunk from junior Raheem Johnson and another dunk from Ford, who tied his career high with 17 points in the first half alone. Another fast break dunk from Ford gave the Bulls their largest lead of the first half at 45-22. The Bulls took a 45-25 lead into the break.
A pair of three pointers from Ford helped the Bulls score the first eight points of the second half and the Bulls never led by less than 23 over the final 20 minutes of play. UB extended its lead to 30 points following a layup from Evans, which gave the Bulls a 65-35 lead. The 30-point advantage was tied for the largest of the game. The 30-point advantage was UB's second largest lead of the season.
"It was a great game to be a part of," said head coach Bobby Hurley. "Just the energy of the crowd and the atmosphere and the way we played defensively was great. Kent State is a very good team that is having an excellent season, and they will continue to have an excellent season. For me the night was about Xavier Ford. He was a star and he did everything we needed to win tonight."
Ford finished with a career-high 25 points, as he became the fourth different UB player to record a 20-point game this year. He went 9-of-14 from the floor, including 3-for-6 from behind the arc. Prior to tonight, Ford had hit just three career three pointers. Ford added nine rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Junior Justin Moss finished the evening with 13 points and nine rebounds, while Evans added 12 points, four assists and a steal. Jarryn Skeete had eight points and two assists, while freshman Lamonte Bearden finished with seven points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Johnson came off the bench and added seven points, three rebounds, while finishing with a career-high four blocked shots. Senior Will Regan added two points, four rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots. Junior Rodell Wigginton finished with four points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals. Also seeing action tonight was Bobby Frasco and Christian Pino, who added two points late in the game.
The 55 points scored by Kent State was its second fewest total of the season as the Golden Flashes had a six-game winning streak snapped. Jimmy Hall led the Golden Flashes with 16 points.
After winning two straight at home, the Bulls will return to the road next week, beginning on Wednesday night at Ball State. Tip off is slated for 7:00 pm.
