Bulls Look To End Three-Game Skid At Miami (OH) On Saturday Afternoon
1/13/2017 12:00:00β―AM | Women's Basketball
BUFFALO, NY - The University at Buffalo women's basketball team will look to get back on track on Saturday afternoon as they travel to Oxford, OH to take on the Miami (OH) RedHawks. The Bulls will be looking to snap a three-game losing streak as the two teams will faceoff for the second time in two weeks. Tip is set for 1:00 pm on Saturday and the game will air live on ESPN3.
BULLS LOOK TO SWEEP SEASON SERIES WITH MIAMI
After dropping their third straight Mid-American Conference game, the UB women's basketball team will look to get back to their winning ways as they head to Oxford, OH to take on the Miami RedHawks. The Bulls and RedHawks met earlier this season with UB collecting a 26-point victory. Saturday's game will tip at 1:00 pm and will air live on ESPN3. The game will be UB's seventh road game of the season and they have dropped three straight away from home.
TOLEDO HANDS BULLS 3RD STRAIGHT LOSS
The Bulls dropped their third straight MAC game on Wednesday night at Alumni Arena to the Toledo Rockets, 73-64. The Bulls couldn't get it going offensively as they were outshot 48.1% to 36.1% for the game. Junior Stephanie Reid notched her first double-double of the season and second of her career as she finished with 11 points, 10 assists, four steals and three rebounds. JoAnna Smith led all UB players with 16 points while Theresa Onwuka finished with 13 points, three rebounds and two steals in her second career start.
FAMILIAR FOE
The Bulls and RedHawks are no strangers as the two MAC squads will be facing off for the 36th time in their history and second time in the last two weeks. The RedHawks own the 20-15 edge in the all-time series but the Bulls have been dominant as of late, winning seven of the last 10 in the series. Buffalo handed the RedHawks a 26-point defeat two weeks ago in the MAC opener for both teams as JoAnna Smith was UB's leading scorer with 11 points and seven rebounds across 24 minutes of action.
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 five games this season while 12 players have appeared in at least 11 games. Buffalo has seen 12 players net at least seven points in a game this season and they have been led in scoring by six different players through 15 games. UB has had at least eight players score in 13 of 15 games this season.
CLEANING THE GLASS
One of the keys to the Bulls success this season has been winning the battle on the boards but this didn't prove to be true for the third straight game on Wednesday. The Bulls won the battle of the boards 42-38 but were handed a 17-point loss at Central Michigan. With the loss, UB dropped to 11-4 on the year and 28-8 over the past two seasons when winning or tying the rebounding battle. As a team, UB ranks 2nd in the MAC and 23rd in the NCAA in rebounds per game (43.9/game).
BULLS RANK 12TH IN NATION IN OFFENSIVE REBOUNDING
Buffalo has been getting after the offensive glass all season long and this continued on Wednesday night against the Toledo Rockets. The Bulls gathered 13 offensive rebounds but were only able to turn those chances into five second chance points. UB has now won the offensive rebounding battle in 13 of their 15 games this season. On the year, UB ranks 12th in the NCAA in offensive rebounds (17.0/game) and 12th in rebound margin (+10.3). UB is also averaging 13.0 second chance points/game so far this season while holding their opponents to an average of 7.5/game.
SMITH CONTINUES TO RISE ALL-TIME SCORING CHARTS
After becoming just the 23rd player in UB history to notch their 1,000th point last week at Ohio, senior JoAnna Smith continued to score the basketball on Wednesday night. With her 16-point effort, Smith moved into 20th place on the all-time scoring charts. Smith sits just 22 points shy of 19th place and 45 points shy of 18th place on the all-time charts.
THE PINE IS FINE
The Buffalo bench has been strong all season but they weren't able to produce at a high level on Wednesday night afainst Toledo. The UB bench was outscored by the Rockets bench 23-13 for the game as Mariah Suchan (six points), Courtney Wilkins (five points) and Ayoleka Sodade (two points) were the only bench players to score. UB is 10-2 on the year when their bench outscores their opponents bench. UB is getting an average of 25.0 PPG out of their bench players on the season.
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 weren't able to win this category on Wednesday and it resulted in their third straight loss. The Rockets outshot the Bulls 48.1%-36.1% as they collected the nine-point victory. UB is 9-0 this season and 26-1 over the past two seasons when shooting a higher percentage from the floor than their opponents.
PAINT SCORING KEY TO SUCCESS
Playing for a coach that dominated the paint throughout her very successful career, the talented Bulls have begun to take a page out of their coaches book as they have won the battle in the paint in 11 of their 15 games this season. UB was outscored 40-24 in the paint on Wednesday and they were handed the loss. The Bulls are 11-0 on the year when winning the battle in the paint as they are averaging 31.0 points while limiting opponents to just 23.1 points inside the paint.
NO SECOND CHANCES
The Bulls have turned into one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the nation while also limiting their opponents to limited second chance opportunities. Over their last eight games, the Bulls have limited their opponents to an average of 6.2 second chance points. UB held St. Bonaventure to zero second chance points earlier this season. The rebounding effort by the Bulls has been impressive as they are limiting their last six opponents to just 8.0 offensive rebounds/game.
SHARING MINUTES
The depth of the Bulls has been a strength all season long and it has helped UB produce a 11-4 record to start the season. All 13 UB players are averaging at least 5.6 minutes of action a game while only three UB players are averaging at least 20 minutes/game. The Bulls have 11 players averaging at least 8.8 minutes/game while JoAnna Smith's playing time went from 34.4 minutes/game last season to 29.0 minutes/game this year, helping the senior stay fresh for another late season run.
NOT YOUR AVERAGE JO
Senior leading scorer JoAnna Smith didn't have her best scoring night of the season on Wednesday but she was able to finish with a team-best 16 points on 4-for-14 shooting. The Southaven, MS native finished the game going 2-for-9 from behind the arc as she has now connected on at least one three pointer in 49 of her last 51 games and at least three triples in 27 of her last 51 games. Smith sits in fourth place on the all-time three pointers made list with 153 makes in her career and she is now just eight threes shy of third place on the list. Buffalo is 9-3 this season and 28-14 over the past two seasons when Smith scores at least 10 points in a game. On the season, Smith is averaging a team-best 13.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists and 1.5 steals while leading UB in scoring seven times.
REID ALL ABOUT IT
Junior point guard Stephanie Reid had another strong game controling the point for UB on Wednesday but it wasn't enough as the Bulls were handed their third straight loss. The Australia native finished off her strong game with 11 points, 10 assists, four steals and three rebounds as she notched her first double-double of the serason and second of her career. She has now recorded at least eight helpers in in six of her last eight games for the Bulls and 10 assists in three of her last five contests. Reid currently sits in 7th place on the all-time assist chart with 337 career helpers and she is now just 23 shy of 6th place (Margeaux Gupilan) on the all-time charts. The junior has reached double figures in scoring eight times in her last 12 games. The crafty defender ranks 8th in the MAC averaging 2.1 SPG after notching four thefts last time out. Behind her recent strong play, Reid is averaging 9.1 points, 6.7 assists, 3.1 rebounds and 2.1 steals while ranking second in the MAC in assist/turnover ratio (2.7) and third in assists (6.7 APG). Through four MAC games, Reid is tied for the conference lead in assists (8.0/game).
ONWUKA CONTINUES STRONG PLAY
Freshman Theresa Onwuka has continued to improve and earn the trust of the UB coaching staff through 15 games this season. The lengthy guard was awarded for her strong play with her second straight start on Wednesday night and she continued to produce in a big way as she netted 13 points. Onwuka was the most efficient Buffalo player as she went 6-for-8 from the floor and she chipped in three rebounds and two steals across 21 minutes of work. The freshman has now went over the 20 minutes played mark four times in her last fives games. On the year, the Nigeria native is averaging 14.3 MPG, 5.0 PPG, 2.5 RPG and 0.9 SPG through 15 career games. She has scored in double figures in three of the four MAC games this season.
HEMPHILL BLOSSOMING IN STARTING ROLE
Freshman forward Summer Hemphill has shown flashes of greatness through her first 15 games and because of those flashes she was awarded with her second straight start on Wednesday nightr. The Buffalo native didn't disappoint her hometown fans as she netted six points, a team-high nine rebounds and one block in 22 minutes of work. Hemphill went 2-for-5 from the floor and currently ranks fifth in the MAC in field goal percentage (56.8%). The freshman 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 12 straight games and has recorded at least one steal in 10 of 15 games. She has also notched two blocks in six of her last 12 games as her quick leaping ability has caused problems for opposing bigs. Through 15 career games, Hemphill is averaging 7.0 points, a team-high 7.2 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 1.2 blocks while notching double digit rebounds a team-best twice this season. Her 2.8 offensive rebounds/game ranks 7th in the MAC so far this season. Through four MAC games, Hemphill is averaging 6.0 points, 8.8 rebounds (seventh in the MAC) and 1.3 blocks.
DOMINANT WHEN ON THE FLOOR
Junior center Cassie Oursler has proved to be one of the most dominant post players in the conference when she is able to stay out of foul trouble. Oursler was able to stay out of foul trouble on Wednesday and produced five points, eight rebounds, two assists and one block across 20 minutes of action. She has fouled out four times this season and the Bulls are 2-2 in those contests. On the season, Oursler is averaging 19.3 minutes, 9.5 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.1 blocks while shooting 46.9% from the floor and 65.6% from the charity stripe. Dating back to last season, Oursler has scored in double figures in 12 of her last 22 games while recording at least one block in 20 of 25 as she has turned into a defensive stopper inside the paint for UB. Oursler has notched 14 multi-block games in her 39 career outings.
TURNING THEM OVER
Through their first 15 games, the Bulls have won the points off turnovers category 10 times and they own a 9-1 record in those games. On Wednesday, UB was outscored 16-12 off turnovers as they were handed the loss. UB turned the ball over 19 times while they forced 18 Toledo turnovers. On the year, UB is forcing an average of 17.7 turnovers/game while turning those turnovers into an average of 19.1 points/game.
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 were outscored in the fast break scoring category for only the third time this season on Wednesday as Toledo held the 10-8 edge. On the season, UB owns the 128-43 edge in fast break scoring and are 10-2 when winning the fast break category.
CHARITY STRIPE PROWESS
Having a point guard who can shoot free throws at a high percentage is a major plus for teams hoping to compete for championships and Buffalo has just that in junior Stephanie Reid. The Melbourne, Australia native has been great at the charity stripe for the Bulls over her career as she has made 160-of-211 attempts (75.8%), ranking seventh in program history for free throw percentage. Senior JoAnna Smith has also been a great free throw shooter over her UB career as she ranks 15th in school history for free throw percentage (71.4%) as she has gone 167-for-234.
