University at Buffalo
20-14
Ohio State
25-7
Women's Hoops Falls To Ohio State In The NCAA Tournament First Round
3/18/2016 12:00:00β―AM | Women's Basketball
COLUMBUS, OH – Playing in their first NCAA Tournament game in program history, the Buffalo women's basketball team had a strong start but couldn't keep it up on Friday afternoon as they fell to #3 Ohio State by the score of 88-69. The Mid-American Conference champion Bulls finished the season with a 20-14 overall record, their first 20-win campaign since 1996-97 and first since joining the MAC.
The Bulls couldn't have asked for a better start on Friday as Cassie Oursler opened the scoring with a difficult layup and Joanna Smith netted a three-pointer to give UB the early 5-0 lead. After an Ohio State layup, Katherine Ups made a nice cut and finished off a layup to make the score 7-2 in favor of the Bulls. The game changed later in the quarter as they held the 11-8 lead but the Buckeyes used a 22-1 run to close out the quarter and take the commanding 30-12 lead after 10 minutes of action.
The Bulls cut into the Buckeyes lead early in the second quarter as they went on a 8-2 run to cut the lead to 12 behind a pair of three's from Courtney Wilkins and Smith and a contested layup by first team All-MAC member, Smith. Unfortunately for the Bulls, the offense went cold down the stretch of the quarter as Ohio State finished the quarter on a 9-0 run to take the 48-23 lead into the halftime locker room.
At half, the Buckeyes had three players in double figures as they shot 54% from the floor while UB was led by Smith who had 11 first half points.
Trailing by 25 entering the second half, the Bulls began to relax and competed at a high level in the third quarter. The Buckeyes opened the quarter on an 8-0 run before Smith hit a layup and Mariah Suchan grabbed an offensive rebound and finished off the layup and one. Wilkins came into the game and made an immediate impact as she sank back-to-back three pointers before Smith converted on a four-point play after getting fouled on her three-pointer. Smith closed out the scoring in the third as the Buckeyes outscored UB by a slim 22-21 advantage.
The Bulls trailed by 26 entering the final quarter but continued to play as if it were a tight game. The Bulls were able to outscore the Buckeyes in the fourth, 25-18. Liisa Ups came in off the bench and made an impact as she netted four straight points in the quarter for UB before Camera Miley entered with some energy, nailing a three-pointer and scoring seven straight UB points. The Buckeyes were too much down the stretch as they held onto the 88-69 win.
Smith led the Bulls in scoring for the 27th time this season as she finished off her first NCAA appearance with 23 points on 6-for-18 from the floor in 26 minutes of action. Smith also netted three triples in the game, giving her 33 games this season with at least one triple and 21 with at least three. The dynamic guard went over the 20-point plateau for the 16th time this season as she finished the season ranking third in program history for points in a season with 621. She also set the program record for three pointers in a season with 100 and minutes played in a season (1,170).
Wilkins came off the bench and scored a career-high 14 points and grabbed a career-best six rebounds for the Bulls. Wilkins silky smooth shot was falling on Friday as she finished the game 4-for-7 from behind the arc, a new career-high for three-pointers made in a game. Suchan finished off a strong performance on the glass with a team-best seven boards while scoring three points. Miley finished with seven points while Stephanie Reid had a team-best six assists, three rebounds and two points in the loss. Reid closed out her impressive sophomore campaign with 172 assists, ranking fourth in program history for assists in a season.
For the game, the Bulls shot just 29.7% from the floor while the Buckeyes high-scoring attack was able to shot 52.4% from the floor. The Bulls bench dominated the Ohio State bench as UB scored 33 bench points compared to 16 from the Buckeyes. UB was also able to win the second chance points category, outscoring OSU 23-8. OSU was able to earn a 32-18 edge in points in the paint.
The season concludes for the Bulls as they finished off the best season in program history, claiming their first MAC title and NCAA Tournament berth. Friday's NCAA Tournament game was the final game for lone UB senior Karin Moss who has been a leader on and off the court for the Bulls over her four-year career.
