Bulls Face Defending National Champions Saturday Afternoon On ESPN2
12/4/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Buffalo (4-3) at #7 Duke (7-1)
December 5, 2015
Cameron Indoor Stadium - 5:15 pm
Radio - Radio in Buffalo - 1520-AM WWKB
Television - ESPN2
The Opening Tip...
• The Bulls hit the road for two straight beginning on Saturday at #7 Duke. It will be the Bulls first ever trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium. UB is 4-3 on the season following a 60-58 loss to St. Bonaventure, while the Blue Devils are 7-1 after a 94-74 win over Indiana on Wednesday night.
• With road games at #7 Duke followed by #5 Iowa State on Monday, the Bulls become the first MAC team since Eastern Michigan in 2012 to play top 10 opponents in back-to-back games. The Eagles played at then #9 Duke on Dec. 28 followed by then #2 Syracuse on Dec. 31.
• With two-point decisions in each of the last two games, this was the first time since 2012-13 that UB has had back-to-back games decided by two points or less. The last came in a pair of losses to Manhattan (65-64) and Kent State (83-81).
• Today's game will air nationally on ESPN2 and is part of Jimmy V Week. The UB coaching staff is wearing lime green ribbons in honor of head coach Nate Oats' wife Crystal and her fight against double-hit lymphoma.
The Opponent
• Duke is ranked seventh in the country and is coming off an impressive 94-74 win over Indiana on Wednesday night in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The Blue Devils are 7-1 on the season with their lone loss coming to Kentucky, 74-63. Kentucky, who was second at the time of the game, is currently the number one team in the nation.
• Duke is led by Grayson Allen, who is averaging 21.8 points per game and is shooting over 52% from the field. Allen is also the leader in assists with 26. Matt Jones is second on the team in scoring at 14.0 points per game, while Amile Jefferson is averaging 11.3 points and a team-high 10.6 rebounds per contest. Jefferson is third nationally in offensive rebounding.
• The Bulls and Blue Devils have one mutual opponent this season in VCU. Duke defeated them 79-71. The Bulls will face VCU on Dec. 22.
Six Pack
Through the first seven games this season, the Bulls have already placed six players in double figures twice, both against Pitt-Bradford and Canisius. It was the first time since Jan. 4, 2012 against Buffalo State that UB has played in a game where six players scored in double figures and this is the first time since the 2003-04 season that UB has done it multiple times in a season. The Bulls placed six in double figures in back-to-back games against Marshall and Northern Illinois when Daniel Gilbert, Mario Jordan, Yassin Idbihi, Turner Battle and Mark Bortz each recorded double figures in the two games. Jason Bird and Roderick Middleton each did it once.
Bulls Have Record-Setting Performance In Season Opener
The Bulls etched their names into a number of records in the season-opening win over Pitt-Bradford. The 60-point victory for UB was its largest win since the 1969-70 season when UB defeated Western Ontario, 117-48. The 109 points scored by the Bulls in the game were the eighth most in school history and the most in a game since 2011. The Bulls also went 40-of-75 from the floor and the 40 field goals are tied for eighth in school history and the most since Feb. 24, 1998 vs. Chicago State.
Bulls Claim Hall of Fame Tipoff Springfield Bracket Championship
With a pair of victories this past weekend at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut, the Bulls won the Springfield Bracket of the Hall of Tipoff Tournament. It was the first time that UB has won an in-season tournament since 2008-09 when the Bulls claimed the Rainbow Classic in Hawaii. The Bulls began the weekend with an 86-68 win over North Carolina A&T before coming back to defeat Vermont, 77-71, in the finals on Sunday night. Senior Jarryn Skeete and sophomore Lamonte Bearden were both named to the All-Tournament Team.
Skeete Shooter
Senior Jarryn Skeete begins his fourth season in the Blue and White, the only four-year member of the Bulls. Skeete will be playing under his third head coach in four seasons. Skeete leads all active players on the Bulls in points (637), rebounds (290) and assists (169).
Skeete tied his career high with 19 points last season against Central Michigan and he also had 14 points in a game at Kent State, scoring the first 12 points of the contest on 4-of-4 shooting from behind the arc.
Skeete led the Bulls in scoring against Old Dominion, finishing with 12 points. He had a career-high six three pointers against North Carolina A&T, including five in the second half. It was the most threes in a game this season by a UB player. Skeete had one of his biggest three pointers against Canisius when he drained a shot while falling out of bounds, which sent the game into overtime.
No Sophomore Slump
Sophomore Lamonte Bearden looks to continue his strong freshman season in 2015-16 after being named to the All-MAC Freshman Team just a year ago. Bearden, who was one of five players named to the Preseason All-MAC East Division squad, led the MAC in assist to turnover ratio last season in conference games. Bearden had at least six assists 10 times last season, including a career-high 10 assists against Cornell, the first UB freshman to have double figures in assists since 2012-13.
Bearden also showed his ability as a scorer last season, averaging 8.3 points per game. The Milwaukee, WI native had a career-high 23 points against Big 4 rival Canisius. Bearden hit the game-winning shot in the regular season finale last season against Bowling Green, giving the Bulls a share of the regular season MAC Title and their second straight East Division crown.
Bearden tied his career high with eight free throws against St. Joseph's as he finished with 13 points against the Hawks. He added eight more free throws against North Carolina A&T and finished with 16 points. For the second time in his career, Bearden hit the 20-point threshold as he had 20 in the win over Vermont, going 6-of-14 from the floor and 7-8 from the free throw line. Bearden had 18 points, five assists and four steals in the victory over Canisius after setting a career high in scoring against the Griffs as a freshman. In his two career games against the cross-town rival, Bearden is averaging 20.5 points, 4.5 assists and 3.0 steals per game.
Getting Wiggy With It
Senior Rodell Wigginton came on late in the season last year, his first in a UB uniform. Wigginton averaged 7.3 points and 4.3 rebounds in his first season with the Bulls, scoring a career-high 20 points against Ohio in early March. Wigginton started six games, but came of the bench in 26 games last year. He had his first double-double against Binghamton with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Wigginton did make an early impression against one of the nation's best teams as he scored 15 points against Kentucky. The Dartmouth, Nova Scotia native, who played at College of Central Florida, had 11 points and eight rebounds in the MAC Semifinals against Akron and added eight points and six rebounds in the MAC Championship game against Central Michigan.
Wigginton began his senior season with a spark on Friday against Pitt-Bradford as he finished with a career-high 25 points on 10-of-12 shooting from the floor, while adding 10 rebounds for his second career double-double. Wigginton added nine points on 4-of-6 shooting against Old Dominion as he added three rebounds, three steals and two blocked shots. Wigginton had one of the best games of his career against North Carolina A&T with 19 points, 11 rebounds and a career-high five assists. He became the first UB player to lead the team in all three categories since Javon McCrea against Bowling Green in 2014. Wigginton accomplished the feat for a second time as he led the Bulls in all three categories in the loss to St. Bonaventure.
Raheem The Dream
Senior Raheem Johnson played in all 33 games off the bench last season and was one of the top defensive players on the Bulls. Johnson led UB in blocked shots with 37, including a career-high four swats against Kent State on national television.
Johnson had 10 points at Ohio, which was a season high for him. Johnson, who played for head coach Nate Oats at Romulus High School, spent his first two years at Barton Community College.
Johnson is currently out with a foot injury.
Eagle Eye
Head coach Nate Oats spent 11 years as the head coach at Romulus High School and he now coaches two of his high school players on this year's team. Senior Raheem Johnson and sophomore Christian Pino both played for Coach Oats at Romulus as did the 2014-15 MAC Player of the Year, Justin Moss. Oats and Romulus won a state title in 2012-13, finishing the year 27-1.
Other current Division-I players that Coach Oats mentored at Romulus High School include: E.C. Matthews (Rhode Island), Wes Clark (Missouri), Jaylin Walker (Kent State), Raven Lee (Eastern Michigan).
Get Smart
Redshirt freshman Ikenna Smart will look to make an impact on the floor this season, after redshirting last year. Smart has tremendous potential, but has only been playing basketball for three years. Smart is a native of Nigeria and was originally a soccer player before he was taught basketball in his native country.
Smart was then brought to the United States, ending up in Greensboro, NC where he played his high school basketball at the New Garden Friends School, where he averaged 13 points and 13 rebounds a game. Smart started in the exhibition game against Daemen and led all players with 11 rebounds. Smart had six points and four rebounds against St. Joseph's. He had a career-high nine rebounds against St. Bonaventure.
Con-Air
Junior Willie Conner joins the Bulls this season after playing last year at Odessa Community College, where he averaged 18.0 points per game. Conner, who played his freshman season at Florida A&M, is a knock down shooter as he hit 43% of his attempts from behind the arc last season.
A Chicago, IL native, Conner played his High School ball at Richard T. Crane High School, averaging 20.0 points. Conner started in the exhibition game and recorded 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor. He had 10 points and four steals in the win over Pitt-Bradford. Conner added 10 points against St. Joseph's and 10 more vs. North Carolina A&T. He had a career-high 14 points in the win over Vermont, hitting a couple of three pointers, while also going 4-of-6 from the line. Conner tied his career high with 14 points against Canisius.
Alright Hamilton
Fellow junior college transfer Blake Hamilton played last season at Mt. San Antonio College in California after spending his freshman year at Northern Arizona. Hamilton averaged 13.5 points and 6.4 rebounds per game last season as he shot 61.5% from the field.
Hamilton is a native of Pasadena, CA and comes from an extremely athletic family that has seen numerous cousins play college basketball. His father played for legendary head coach Don Haskins at UTEP.
Hamilton scored 21 points and had seven rebounds in the win over Pitt-Bradford, going 7-of-11 from the floor and 3-of-5 from three-point range. Hamilton added nine points and five rebounds against Old Dominion. Hamilton led the Bulls with 14 points and seven rebounds against St. Joseph's. Hamilton added 14 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals in the win over Vermont. He had another 14-point game against Canisius, while adding seven rebounds.
David Is Goliath
UB's third junior college transfer on this year's team is David Kadiri, who played at South Plains Community College after spending his freshman year at Maryland-Baltimore County. Kadiri helped lead his junior college to an appearance in the JUCO national championship, recording 13 points, 14 rebounds and eight blocked shots in the championship game. Kadiri made his UB debut at Old Dominion and he finished with six points, four rebounds and two blocked shots.
I Know You...
Both Willie Conner and David Kadiri both played in the WJCAC and Kadiri's South Plains squad got the better of each of the two meetings last season. In the first meeting at South Plains, Kadiri's squad won 107-86, while in the second meeting, which was held at Odessa, South Plains won, 80-69. Conner had 14 points in the second meeting between the two schools.
In the Nick of Time
Freshman Nick Perkins joins the Bulls from Ypsilanti, MI after playing his high school ball at Milan High School. In his high school career, Perkins recorded four league titles, four district crowns, two regional titles, and one state title.
Perkins went 22-3 during his senior season at Milan, averaging 18.0 points and 10.0 rebounds. He was a 1,000 point scorer in high school and a four-time All-State selection. Perkins had 12 points in the season opener and added nine points and five rebounds against Vermont. Perkins finished with a career-high 15 points in the win over Canisius, including the game-winning dunk in overtime.
Mass Production
Freshman CJ Massinburg is the first UB basketball player from the state of Texas as the Dallas native played his high school ball at South Oak Cliff, where he averaged 22.3 points per game. Massinburg had a 42-point game against Spruce High School during his senior year. He also played in the prestigious Dallas vs. Tarrant County All-Star Game, where he was named the Most Valuable Player.
Massinburg was the most impressive player for the Bulls in the exhibition game as he had 25 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals against Daemen. Massinburg went 5-of-6 from three point range. He added 19 points in the regular season opener against Pitt-Bradford as he went 6-of-9 from the floor, including 2-of-2 from three point range and 5-of-6 from the charity stripe.
Massinburg had 17 points, including 3-of-5 from three against North Carolina A&T.
3-Kola
Fellow freshman Nikola Rakicevic joins the Bulls from Serbia and he is a dynamic three-point shooter, showcasing his skills at Bulls Madness in October. Rakicevic was a member of the Serbian U-17 National Team, being named to the All-Tournament team at the U-17 World Championships.
Rakicevic averaged 12.4 points and 5.7 rebounds during the World Championships, scoring 19 points in a game against the United States and 17 points in a game against China.
Cleared by the NCAA just before the regular season opener, Rakicevic played a team-high 25 minutes against Pitt-Bradford and finished with two points and seven rebounds.
Walk, Walk, Walk...
Part of the 15-man roster for the Bulls includes three walk-ons for UB, including sophomore Christian Pino, who spent his redshirt freshman season with the Bulls last year. Pino saw action in 11 games last year, scoring a pair of points in games against Binghamton and Kent State.
UB added two freshman walk-ons this season in a pair of New York natives. Zac DiSalvo joins the Bulls from Rochester, NY where he played at Greece Athena High School and helped his team to a 24-1 record, averaging 18.0 points. His team was Section V state runner ups.
Fellow freshman Tyler Moffe comes to UB from Elmira, NY where he averaged 20.0 points a game at Elmira High School and graduated as his school's all-time leading scorer.
The Pine Is Fine
The UB bench outscored Pitt-Bradford, 67-8, in the opener as three players reached double figures off the bench, including 20-point performances from Wigginton and Hamilton. The bench outscored the starting five in the game. UB got a strong contribution off the bench in the exhibition game as well as the Bulls outscored Daemen, 54-14, in bench points led by 25 points from Massinburg. Freshman Nick Perkins added 12 points and eight rebounds, while senior Raheem Johnson had nine points. The UB bench outscored its starters against St. Joseph's as it finished with 43 of the team's 67 points. The bench shined again against Canisius as it finished with 48 of the team's 98 points. The UB bench has outscored its opponent in each of the first seven games this season and so far the bench has 258 of the team's 553 points (46.7%).
Home Sweet Home
Since the beginning of the 2013-14 season, which included two years of Nate Oats as assistant coach, the Bulls have been nearly perfect at home, winning 26 of the last 30 games. Since the start of the 2010-11 season, the Bulls are 62-16 in Alumni Arena and going back even further, the Bulls are 127-46 at home since the 2003-04 season.
