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Women's Hoops Welcomes First-Place Ohio To Alumni Arena On Wednesday Night
2/2/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
BUFFALO, NY - University at Buffalo, the State University of New York women's basketball team welcomes first-place Ohio to Alumni Arena on Wednesday night for a Mid-American Conference showdown. Tip on Wednesday is set for 7:00 pm and will air on the Buckeye Cable Sports Network (BCSN) as well as Time Warner Cable Sports (TWCS) locally.
SCOUTING THE BOBCATS
The Ohio Bobcats enter Wednesday nights game against the Bulls with an overall record of 17-3 and a MAC mark of 9-0. The first-place Bobcats have won 12 straight games after downing Ball State by the score of 68-67 on Saturday. The Bobcats are led offensively by a pair of dynamic scorers in Kiyanna Black and Quiera Lampkins. Black leads the way averaging 18.0 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.9 steals while Lampkins is averaging 14.0 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists per contest. Offensively Ohio is averaging 71.5 points/game while allowing just 59.0 points. The Bobcats are also averaging over five blocked shots per game defensively while also securing 9.3 pilfers a game.
ALL-TIME SERIES
The Bulls and the Bobcats are knotted 16-16 in the series dating back to 1998-99. Ohio has won four straight games against the Bulls to snap a four-game UB winning streak. The Bobcats downed UB three times last season including in the MAC semifinals at Quicken Loans Arena by the score of 63-55.
BULLS TO HOST OHIO ON "AROUND THE WORLD DAY" AT ALUMNI ARENA
On Wednesday night at Alumni Arena the Bulls will be hosting "Around The World Day", an event designed to give people the opportunity to let UB Athletics know where they are watching the women's basketball game from around the world. The Bulls roster consists of seven international players, four from Australia (Stephanie Reid, Courtney Wilkins, Katherine Ups, Liisa Ups), one from Canada (Ayoleka Sodade), one from Bosnia & Herzegovina (Tamara Brcina) and one from the Netherlands (Mirte Scheper). Fans around the world are encouraged to tweet @UBAthletics and @UBwomenshoops where they are watching from with the hashtag #BullsAroundTheWorld. Fans coming to the game are encouraged to bring flags from their home country.
BULLS DROP HEARTBREAKER AT THE BUZZER TO NIU
Last time out the Bulls were not able to snap their losing streak as the Northern Illinois Huskies hit a game-winning desperation three-pointer at the Buzzer to take the 76-74 home victory. The Bulls led most of the way, including a game-high 12-point lead entering the fourth quarter but they were not able to hold onto a fourth quarter lead for just the second time all season. Joanna Smith's career day didn't end in a win as she netted her second career double-double with a career-high 31 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. The Bulls lost the rebounding battle 48-37 but defensively they forced 14 turnovers that turned into 14 points.
JOANNA SMITH GOES FOR 31 POINTS IN LOSS TO HUSKIES
Junior guard Joanna Smith had a career game on Saturday in the Bulls loss to NIU as she finished off her second career double-double with a career-high 31 points and a career-best 14 boards. Smith went off for 18 points in the third quarter as she went 6-for-10 from the floor with five three-pointers in 10 minutes of action. The shifty guard also netted a career-high seven three-pointers in the game, the third most three-pointers made in a single game in program history. On the year, Smith ranks third in the MAC in scoring (18.6 PPG) while also ranking second on the Bulls in rebounding (5.8 RPG). She also leads the MAC in scoring in conference games (22.4 PPG) and second in three-pointers made (58). The Bulls are 6-4 on the year when Smith notches 20+ points and she has notched eight 20+ point scoring games in her last 10 games. She now ranks eighth in program history for three-pointers made in a season (58). Over her last 10 games, Smith is averaging 22.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game while playing a team-high 35.8 MPG. Smith has been named MAC East Player of the Week three times so far this season, becoming the first UB player since Kourtney Brown in 2010-11 to win the conference weekly award at least three times in a season.
REID ALL ABOUT IT
After some growing pains early in the season, sophomore point guard Stephanie Reid has been very consisent as of late. Reid took a back seat to Joanna Smith on Saturday as she finished with just six points, five assists and three rebounds. Over her last six games, Reid has played at another level as she is averaging 14.8 points, 5.2 assists and 3.5 rebounds while notching over 10 points in five of those six contests. Through 19 games this season, Reid has continued to prosper into one of the best point guards in the conference as she is averaging 10.3 points, 4.4 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 2.1 steals. The nifty defender ranks third in the MAC in steals/game in MAC play (2.3 SPG) and second in assists/game (5.0). Reid's impact on the game goes deeper than just points and assists as the sophomore's leadership and calmness on the court are unmatched by most point guards in the conference.
oursler strong down low
OURSLER STRONG
There is no hiding the fact that when Cassie Oursler is on the floor and not in foul trouble, the Bulls are a handful to handle. The junior continued to produce on Saturday afternoon before fouling out as she netted 10 points and grabbed seven boards in the loss. Oursler was dominant down low for the Bulls as the Huskies didn't have an answer for her size as she was able to log a season-high 27 minutes of action. She finished going 5-for-10 from the floor while snagging two offensive rebounds that led to four points.Oursler is now averaging 8.2 points and a team-high 7.4 rebounds on the year while starting eight of nine games since sitting out due to transfer rules. The junior has also produced a team-high two double-doubles on the year.
BADE EARNS FIRST CAREER START
Freshman guard Gabi Bade has continued to grow into a solid role player for the Bulls through her first 19 games of her career. The freshman impressed head coach Felisha Legette-Jack enough to earn her first career start on Saturday against the Northern Illinois Huskies. Bade played 20 minutes and finished with three points, two rebounds and a steal. For the season, Bade averages 3.7 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game while ranking second on the team with 14 three-pointers.
UPS, UPS AND AWAY
After struggling a little bit over the past month of conference play, sophomore Katherine Ups got back on track on Saturday against Northern Illinois as she netted 10 points and snagged three rebounds. The 10-point outing for Katherine was her first double-digit outing since January 9 at Kent State, the Bulls last victory, when she scored 12 points. Ups started quick on Saturday as she netted six points in the opening quarter on 3-for-5 from the floor. On the year, the sophomore is averaging 6.3 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.1 assists while starting 17 of 19 games for the Bulls.
GETTING TO THE CHARITY STRIPE
Early in the season, the Bulls really struggled with attacking the basket and getting to the free throw line but it has become a point of emphasis for UB over their last seven games. The Bulls have been more aggressive towards the basket and drawing more foul calls as they are making an average of 13.4 free throws per game over their last seven. Last time out, the Bulls went 12-for-16 from the charity stripe (75%) as Joanna Smith netted four freebies and Courtney Wilkins hit a career-best three in the loss to NIU. UB got to the free throw line a season-high 31 times against Kent State, their lone win in the last six games.
WILKINS SCORES CAREER-HIGH
Sophomore Courtney Wilkins has continued to improve for the Bulls throughout the season as she has been a key member of the UB bench. The Australia native produced a career-high nine points, three rebounds and a steal in 12 minutes of action last time out against the Huskies. Wilkins came in the game in the second quarter and drained back-to-back three-pointers to give the Bulls their biggest lead of the game, 12 points. On the year, the sophomore is averaging 3.0 points, 2.0 rebounds while getting nine minutes per game as a key three-point specialist reserve.
BATTLE OF THE BOARDS
The Bulls have proved throughout this season that winning the battle on the boards was a key to winning games. This theory proved to be true on Saturday as the Bulls were dominated in the rebounding battle, 48-37, and they lost the game. The Bulls are currently 8-3 on the year when winning the rebounding battle or being tied in rebounds and 2-6 when they are outrebounded. UB is averaging 39.3 RPG including 14.1 offensive boards/game. In MAC play, the Bulls rank second in the conference in offensive RPG (15.9). Joanna Smith and Cassie Oursler have combined to grab 13.2 RPG so far this season as the teams top two rebounders.
HOLDING STRONG
One key factor to success for the Bulls has been earning the lead before the fourth quarter begins and UB has been pretty successful with that so far. When UB holds the lead heading into the final 10 minutes, they hold a 9-1 record, with their lone loss coming to NIU. If the Bulls are trailing as they enter the final quarter, they own a 1-8 record with their lone come-from-behind fourth quarter victory coming against Central Florida, when they were down two heading into the fourth. When the Bulls are leading with five minutes to go, they own the same 9-1 record on the year.
LINEUP CHANGES
After going with the same lineup for the first seven games of the season, the Bulls have begun to tinker with their lineup during conference play. UB has used a total of seven different starting lineup combinations so far this season including four in the last four games. Last game, freshman Gabi Bade made her first career start for the Bulls and she finished with three points in the loss. The Lineup of Stephanie Reid, Joanna Smith, Liisa Ups, Katherine Ups and Mirte Scheper has been used the most this season, nine times in 19 games.
