Bulls Shoot For Program Record 9-0 Start As They Welcome St. Bonaventure To Alumni Arena Wednesday
12/20/2016 12:00:00β―AM | Women's Basketball
BUFFALO, NY - The University at Buffalo women's basketball team (8-0, 0-0 MAC) looks to stay unbeaten on Wednesday afternoon as they welcome the St. Bonaventure Bonnies for a Big 4 clash at Alumni Arena. The Bulls will be aiming to set the program record for best start to a season, 9-0, as they welcome the Bonnies at 12:00 pm.
BULLS LOOK FOR BIG 4 SWEEP AS BONNIES COME TO TOWN
The University at Buffalo women's basketball team sets their sights on setting a program record for the best start to a season on Wednesday afternoon as they welcome Big 4 foe St. Bonaventure to Alumni Arena for a 12:00 pm tip. The Bulls are aiming for a 9-0 start to the season as well as a sweep of the Big 4 teams after already downing Niagara and Canisius earlier this season. The Bulls last defeated the other three Big 4 teams during the 2014-15 campaign.
UB STAYS HOT WITH WIN AT CANISIUS
The Bulls stayed hot last time out as they collected their second road win of the season with a dominant 65-52 victory against Big 4 foe Canisius. With the win, the Bulls tied the program record for best start to a season with a 8-0 mark. Senior JoAnna Smith led the way for the Bulls as she netted 19 of her team-high 23 points in the first half while also grabbing six rebounds and two steals in the win. Freshman Summer Hemphill had a career day for the Bulls off the bench as the Buffalo native recorded her first career double-double with 13 points and a career-high 14 rebounds while also notching two blocks. Junior point guard Stephanie Reid did it all for the Bulls in the win as she netted eight points, eight assists, seven rebounds and three steals as the Bulls stayed unbeaten.
UNDEFEATED AND IT FEELS SO GOOD
The Bulls improved to 8-0 on the year, tying the best start in program history, with a win over Canisius last time out. The Bulls are currently one of 11 undefeated teams left in the country and the lone mid-major program. The latest NCAA RPI rankings were released on Monday afternoon and the Bulls checked in at #16. Earilier this season, the Bulls checked in at #12, the highest ranking in program history in the RPI polls. RPI stands for Rating Percentage Index which is a quantity used to rank basketball teams based upon a team's wins, losses and strength of schedule.
FAMILIAR FOE
This marks the 25th meeting of all-time between the two Big 4 foes with the Bonnies holding the 16-8 all-time series lead over the Bulls. The Bonnies have completely dominated the series over the last 10 matchups as they own the 8-2 edge against the Bulls. St. Bonaventure cruised to a 59-32 win at the Reilly Center last season as they held the Bulls to just 19% shooting from the floor and owning a 52-30 advantage in rebounding.
NEW YORK STATE OF MIND
With a 8-0 record, the UB women's basketball team is one of just 11 teams in the nation still unbeaten. The Bulls are the only mid-major program with an unblemished record while also being the lone team in the state of New York without a loss.
NON-CONFERENCE STRENGTH
The Bulls have begun to have success in the non-conference portion of their schedule recently as over the past 3+ seasons, UB owns a 30-13 record against non-conference foes. The Bulls were especially good against non-conference opponents last season as they owned a 8-4 record after starting the season off at 6-0. The Bulls are 8-0 against non-conference foes so far this season as they are winning by an average of 14.9 PPG.
SPREAD OFFENSE
One of the major strengths of the Bulls this season has been their depth at every position. The Bulls have played all 13 players in at least three games this season while 12 players have appeared in at least six games. Buffalo has seen 11 players net at least seven points in a game this season and they have been led in scoring by five different players through seven games. UB has had at least eight players score in at least seven of eight games this season.
THE PINE IS FINE
The Buffalo bench continued to be very servicable on Thursday night in the win over Canisius as the Bulls had five bench players score a point. Summer Hemphill led all bench players with 13 points and 14 rebounds while Brittany Morrison added three points in seven minutes. The Bulls held the 21-11 edge in bench scoring while improving to 7-0 on the year when their bench outscores their opponents bench. UB is getting an average of 27.4 PPG out of their bench players on the season.
SHARING MINUTES
The depth of the Bulls has been a strength all season long and it has helped UB produce eight straight wins to start the season. All 13 UB players are averaging at least six minutes of action a game while only three UB players are averaging at least 20 minutes/game. The Bulls have nine players averaging at least 10 minutes/game while JoAnna Smith went from 34.4 minutes/game last season to 29.4 minutes/game this year, helping the senior stay fresh for another late season run.
NOT YOUR AVERAGE JO
Senior JoAnna Smith had her best game of the season against Canisius on Thursday night as she exploded for a season-best 23 points, including a season-best 19 in the opening half. Smith finished off her game going 7-for-22 from the floor while connecting on four three pointers and grabbing six rebounds, three offensive. The Southaven, MS native was able to go 4-for-13 from behind the arc as she has now connected on at least one three pointer in 42 of her last 44 games and at least three triples in 25 of her last 44 games. Smith currently sits in fifth place on the all-time three pointers list with 137 in her career, just three shy of fourth place. Buffalo improved to 7-0 this season and 26-11 over the past two seasons when Smith scores at least 10 points in a game. She also has currently netted 956 career points as she aims to become just the 23rd player in program history to surpass the 1,000-point plateau. On the season, Smith is averaging a team-best 14.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists while leading UB in scoring four times.
REID ALL ABOUT IT
Junior point guard Stephanie Reid continued to produce on both ends of the court in the Bulls win on Sunday. Reid was able to score in double figures for the fourth straight game as she netted a season-high 16 points, four assists and three steals in 35 minutes of work. The Australia native might have had a better day on the defensive end of the court as she was able to lock down the Pride's best scoring threat, limiting her to 11 points while causing her to turn the ball over six times. Reid has notched at least six assists in five of her eight games and has had seven assists in four games. With her fifth assist on Thursday, Reid moved into 10th place on the Bulls all-time assists charts as she has 283 career dimes. She is just 28 assists shy of 9th place on the all-time charts. After her fifth straight strong outing, Reid is averaging 8.4 points, 5.8 assists and 2.9 rebounds while ranking second in the MAC in assist/turnover ratio (2.7) and fourth in assists (5.8 APG).
FRESHMAN PHENOM
Freshman forward Summer Hemphill has shown flashes of greatness through her first seven games at Buffalo but finally put it all together against Canisius on Thursday. The local talent had a monster game for the Bulls as she notched her first career double-double with 13 points and a career-best 14 rebounds. Hemphill went 6-for-8 from the floor while snagging five offensive rebounds and earning two rejections against the Griffs The Buffalo native continues to cause problems for opposing teams with her length at the top of the Buffalo press while also settling in defensively as she has notched at least one block in five straight games and has recorded at least one steal in six of eight. The freshman has notched two blocks in four of her last five games. Through eight career games, Hemphill is averaging 7.8 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.0 blocks while ranking second in the MAC in field goal percentage (.658).
OURSLER'S BLOCK PARTY
Junior center Cassie Oursler has started to play at a high level down low for the Bulls as of late but had a quiet game against Canisius on Thursday. The junior finished with four points, two rebounds, one block and one steal while playing just 16 minutes. On the season, Oursler is averaging 20.1 minutes, 10.1 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks while shooting 45.2% from the floor and 70.0% from the charity stripe. Dating back to last season, Oursler has scored in double figures in nine of her last 15 games while recording at least one block in 16 of 18 as she has turned into a defensive stopper inside the paint for UB. Oursler has notched 13 multi-block games in her 32 career outings.
SUCHAN MAKES SIXTH STRAIGHT START
Entering the season as a reserve hasn't slowed down the development of junior Mariah Suchan as she was awarded her sixth straight start of the season at power forward on Thursday at Canisius. Suchan had another strong game for the Bulls as she was able to grab eight rebounds and score three points. Suchan was strong defensively once again and was able to grab a season-best six offensive rebounds in the win. The Witchita, KS native is averaging a career-best 18.4 minutes, 4.9 points and 5.9 rebounds so far this season. Suchan has earned nine career starts with the Bulls owning a 7-2 mark in those games.
SODADE'S PLAYING TIME INCREASING
After a strong finish to her freshman campaign, sophomore Ayoleka Sodade has continued to grow into a strong bench player for the Bulls this season. The Windsor, Ontario native saw five minutes of action against Canisius and grabbed three rebounds and scored one point while playing very sound defense. Sodade has seen an increase in playing minutes over the last four games as she is averaging 10.3 minutes of action across four wins. On the year, Sodade is averaging 8.5 minutes, 1.8 points and 2.0 rebounds while being a strong on ball defender.
BAD(E) TO THE BONE
Sophomore Gabi Bade has proved to be a legitamate scoring threat off the Buffalo bench over her two-year career. The Milpitas, CA native continued to be a key component on the Buffalo bench as she played 12 minutes and finished with two points, two assists and a rebound while manning the point for UB. Bade is having a career year for UB as she is averaging 18.1 minutes, 6.4 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists while also netting a career-high 16 points earlier in the season. UB is 2-0 this season and 4-1 over the past two seasons when Bade nets at least 10 points.
UPS, UPS AND AWAY
Earning the starting nod for the second straight season at the small forward position, Katherine Ups has continued to grow into an important role player for the Bulls. The Wollongong, Australia native is a glue player for a very strong and deep Buffalo team and she continued to prosper in this role on Thursday. Ups finished off the win over Canisius with six points, two assists and a rebound across 21 minutes of work. On the year, Ups has started all eight games and is averaging 5.1 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steals across an average of 19.8 minutes of action per game. The junior has earned 25 straight starts for the Bulls and UB owns a 18-7 record in those starts.
ONWUKA CONTINUES STEADY PLAY
Freshman Theresa Onwuka has continued to improve and earn the trust of the UB coaching staff through eight games this season. The lengthy guard saw action in her eighth straight game on Thursday night and played eight minutes while netting her only shot attempt, a layup. On the year, Onwuka is averaging 10.6 MPG, 3.4 PPG, 1.3 RPG and 0.9 SPG through eight career games.
MORRISON GROWING INTO BENCH ROLE
After starting the first two games of the season at forward, Sophomore Brittany Morrison is expanding her game off the bench for the Bulls over the past six wins. The undersized forward came off the bench in Thursday's win at Canisius and provided UB with three points across seven minutes while playing strong defense The North Ridgeville, OH native is averaging 2.9 points and 3.5 rebounds across 11.8 minutes/game so far this season.
CLEANING THE GLASS
One of the keys to the Bulls success last season was winning the battle of the boards and this continued to be true in the Bulls win over Canisius on Thursday. The Bulls outrebounded the Griffs 50-29 for the game, improving to 8-0 on the year and 25-4 over the past two seasons when winning or tying the rebounding battle. The Bulls grabbed 21 offensive rebounds, fourth time they grabbed at least 20 this season, and turned those into 11 second chance points. On the year, UB ranks 6th in the NCAA in rebounding margin (+13.4) and 9th in offensive rebounds (18.0/game). UB is averaging 15.1 second chance points/game so far this season while holding their opponents to an average of 8.8/game.
TURNING THEM OVER
For the first time in six games, UB was outscored in points off turnovers as the Griffs held the 16-10 edge in the game. Buffalo was able to force 18 Griffs turnovers but only turned those into 10 points while Canisius turned UB over 20 times and scored 16 points. On the year, UB is forcing an average of 18.3 turnovers/game while turning those turnovers into an average of 21.0 PPG.
DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
The strength of the Bulls over the past two seasons has been their defense and that has continued early on this season as UB improved to 8-0 on the year after holding Canisius to just 52 points. The Bulls defense was outstanding on Thursday night as the Griffs were only able to shoot 32.7 percent from the floor and just 26.1 percent from behind the arc while turning the ball over 18 times in the game. Buffalo improved to 32-7 over the last two seasons when holding their opponents under 70 points and are 13-0 when holding their opponents to scoring 50 points or less over the past two seasons.
RUNNING WITH THE BULLS
The Bulls haven't been known to be a team that likes to get out on the fast break and run but that trend has begun to change early on this season with the addition of some athletic and talented freshman. The Bulls held the dominant 7-0 edge in fast break points on Thursday as they improved to 8-0 on the year when winning this category. Over their eight wins, UB owns a 74-16 edge in fast break scoring.
SHOOTING FOR THE STARS
One of the keys to success for the Bulls over the past couple of seasons under head coach Felisha Legette-Jack has been shooting a better percentage from the floor than their opponents. The Bulls were able to do this once again on Thursday as they shot 40.7% from the floor while holding the Griffs to just 32.7% shooting. UB is now 6-0 this season and 23-1 over the past two seasons when shooting a higher percentage from the floor than their opponents.
