Women's Hoops Opens Up February On The Road At Toledo On Wednesday
1/31/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
BUFFALO, NY - The University at Buffalo women's basketball team (15-5, 5-4 MAC) opens up February on the road at Toledo on Wednesday night as they look to win their second straight road MAC game. UB will be looking for some payback against the Rockets as Toledo handed UB the 73-64 defeat at Alumni Arena earlier this season. Tip is set for 7:00 pm at Savage Arena on Wednesday night.
The game will air live on ESPN3 or can be heard on the radio on ESPN1520 with Matt Mattia on the call starting at 6:30 pm with the pre-game show.
BULLS LOOK FOR ROAD WIN OVER TOLEDO ON WEDNESDAY
The Bulls got back to their winning ways on Saturday afternoon at Western Michigan as they collected their fifth MAC win of the season behind their strong defense. The Bulls will stay on the road Wednesday as they search for some revenge against the Toledo Rockets after they downed UB at Alumni Arena earlier this season. Wednesday's game will tip at 7:00 pm at Savage Arena in Toledo, OH. The game will air live on ESPN3 or can be heard on the radio on ESPN1520 with Matt Mattia on the call starting at 6:30 pm with the pre game show.
DEFENSE HOLDS WMU TO 47 POINTS IN WIN
The Bulls got back on track defensively on Saturday afternoon as they were able to pick up the 62-47 victory at Western Michigan. The UB defense held the Broncos to just 26.2% shooting for the game and only 22 second half points as they cruised to their fifth MAC win of the season. The Bulls were led offensively by senior JoAnna Smith who netted 27 points on 11-for-20 from the floor and 5-for-11 from behind the arc, her third straight 20+ point effort. UB was also able to receive some solid contributions from their bench players as Katherine Ups snagged a season-high 11 rebounds while Mariah Suchan finished with eight points and five rebounds and Brittany Morrison finished with four points and a season-high nine rebounds.
FAMILIAR FOE
This marks the 24th meeting between the two programs all-time with the Rockets holding the dominant 19-4 edge over the Bulls. The inaugural game in the series took place during the 1998-99 campaign. The Rockets were able to claim the 73-64 victory at Alumni Arena earlier this season as the Rockets dominated the points in the paint 40-24 and Mikaela Boyd notched a double-double (19 points and 10 rebounds).
CLEANING THE GLASS
One of the keys to the Bulls success this season has been winning the battle on the boards. UB was not able to do this on Saturday afternoon as they were outrebounded 51-44 but UB was able to collect the 15-point road victory. UB is 13-4 on the year and 30-8 over the past two seasons when winning or tying the rebounding battle. As a team, UB ranks 1st in the MAC and 12th in the NCAA in rebounds per game (43.8/game).
BULLS RANK 11TH IN NATION IN OFFENSIVE REBOUNDING
Buffalo has been getting after the offensive glass all season long and this continued on Saturday afternoon as they grabbed 14 offensive rebounds in the win at Western Michigan. The Bulls turned those 14 offensive rebounds into seven second chance points. UB has now won or tied the offensive rebounding battle in 16 of their 20 games this season. On the year, UB ranks 11th in the NCAA in offensive rebounds (17.1/game) and 17th in rebound margin (+8.5). UB is also averaging 13.8 second chance points/game so far this season while holding their opponents to an average of 7.8/game.
SMITH CONTINUES TO RISE ALL-TIME SCORING CHARTS
After becoming just the 23rd player in UB history to notch their 1,000th point at Ohio earlier this season, senior JoAnna Smith continued to score the basketball on Saturday as she led UB in scoring with 27 points, her third straight 20-point effort. With her 27-point effort, Smith moved into 11th place on the all-time scoring charts with 1,172 career points and she sits just one point shy of 10th place. Smith also moved into 3rd place on UB's all-time three pointers made charts as she has connected on 172 through 109 career games.
DROPPIN' DIMES
As a team, the Bulls have been dishing out assists at a high rate as over their last six games they are averaging 15.0 assists/game. After tying the program record for assists in a game with 16 against Ball State, Stephanie Reid finished off Saturday's game with eight more assists in the win. Reid has notched 36 assists over her last three games, the most across a three-game stretch in program history. Reid's 28 assists across a two-game stretch mark the most assists across a two-game stretch in the NCAA this 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 were able to win this categorey 38.2% to 26.2% last time out at Western Michigan as they collected the win. Buffalo improved to 12-0 this season and 29-1 over the past two seasons when shooting a higher percentage from the floor than their opponents.
DEFENSE TIGHTENS UP AT WMU
The strength of the Bulls over the past two seasons has been their defense and that strong defense has helped UB gather a 15-5 record to start the season. The Buffalo defense had one of their better performances of the season on Saturday as they held the Broncos to just 26.2% shooting for the game and allowed just 22 second half points. UB was able to force 18 turnovers and they turned those chances into 18 points off of turnovers. The Bulls rank 1st in the MAC in scoring defense as they are allowing just 59.9 points/game. Buffalo is 38-7 over the last two seasons when holding their opponents under 70 points and are 17-0 when holding their opponents to scoring 50 points or less over the past two seasons. UB is also 12-0 this season when holding their opponents to 59 points or less.
DOMINATE THE PAINT
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 14 of their 20 games this season. UB had a strong game inside the paint on Saturday as they outscored the Broncos 32-24 in the win. The Bulls improved to 14-0 on the year when winning the battle in the paint as they are averaging 30.5 points while limiting opponents to just 23.9 points inside the paint.
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 this season with the addition of some athletic and talented freshman. The Bulls won this category for the 17th time on Saturday as they outscored Western Michigan 6-4 in the fast break. On the season, UB owns the 171-63 edge in fast break scoring and are 14-3 when winning the fast break category. UB has won the fast break category in seven of their last eight wins including their last four wins.
PROTECTING THE THREE POINT LINE
The Bulls have turned into one of the best three point defense teams in the MAC as of late as they rank 1st in the MAC allowing their opponents to shoot 28.2% from behind the arc. In MAC play, UB ranks is tied for first in three point defense as their opponents are shooting just 26.0%. Last time out, the Broncos were only able to go 2-for-10 from behind the arc in the Bulls win. Through nine MAC games, the Buffalo defense is allowing just 4.2 triples against/game.
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 13 games, the Bulls have limited their opponents to an average of 7.0 second chance points. Buffalo has held 16 opponents and 13 of their last 14, to 10 second chance points or less this season. The rebounding effort by the Bulls has been impressive as they are limiting their last 13 opponents to just 9.9 offensive rebounds/game while averaging 17.0 themselves.
JOANNA SMITH NAMED MAC EAST PLAYER OF THE WEEK
After a strong week that saw her average 26.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals, senior JoAnna Smith earned MAC East Player of the Week honors for the first time this season and fifth time in her career. Smith finished off Saturday's game with a game-high 27 points, four rebounds and two steals. The Southaven, MS native finished the game going 11-for-20 from the floor and 5-for-11 from behind the arc as she has now connected on at least one three pointer in 54 of her last 56 games and at least three triples in 30 of her last 56 games. She has now gone over the 20-point plateau in three straight games and has connected on an average of five three pointers in those games. Smith moved into third place on the all-time three pointers made list with 172 makes in her career as she has proved to be one of the most dangerous deep range shooters in program history. Buffalo is 13-4 this season and 32-15 over the past two seasons when Smith scores at least 10 points in a game. On the season, Smith is averaging a team-best 16.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists and 1.6 steals while leading UB in scoring 12 times. The captain has surpassed the 20-point plateau seven times this season including five times in her past eight games for the Bulls. In MAC play, Smith ranks 3rd in the conference in scoring as she is averaging 21.0 points while ranking 2nd in three pointers made with 30.
REID ALL ABOUT IT
Junior point guard Stephanie Reid continued her steady play at the point for UB on Saturday as she dished out eight assists to go along with three points, five steals and two rebounds in the road win over WMU. She has recorded at least eight helpers in nine of her last 13 games for the Bulls and at least 10 assists in five of her last 10 contests. Her 36 assists over her last three games are the most in program history while her 28 assists over a two-game span is the most in the NCAA this season. Reid sits in 6th place on the all-time assist chart with 382 career helpers and she is now just six shy of 5th place (Ashley Zuber) on the all-time charts. The junior has reached double figures in scoring 10 times in her last 17 games. Reid has recorded at least one steal in 17 of 20 games and has notched multi-steal games 11 times. Behind her recent strong play, Reid is averaging 8.5 points, 7.4 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 2.1 steals while ranking first in the MAC in assist/turnover ratio (3.2) and second in assists (7.4 APG). Through nine MAC games, Reid is 1st in the MAC in assists per game (8.6/game) and first in assist/turnover ratio (4.3).
ONWUKA GROWING INTO IMPORTANT SCORING THREAT
Freshman Theresa Onwuka has continued to improve and earn the trust of the UB coaching staff through 20 games this season. The lengthy guard earned her seventh straight start on Saturday and proved to be an important scorer for the Bulls as she netted 11 points, six rebounds and three steals while playing a career-high 40 minutes. The freshman has now went over the 20 minutes played mark nine times in her last 10 games and has scored in double figures in all seven starts this season. On the year, the Nigeria native is averaging 18.7 MPG, 6.8 PPG, 3.8 RPG and 1.1 SPG through 20 career games. She has scored in double figures in eight of the nine MAC games.
HEMPHILL BLOSSOMING INTO A STAR
Freshman forward Summer Hemphill has shown flashes of greatness through her first 20 games and because of those flashes she was awarded with her seventh straight start on Saturday. The Buffalo native struggled for the first time on Saturday as she played just nine minutes and didn't take a shot in the win over Western Michigan. Hemphill currently ranks 4th in the MAC in field goal percentage (55.8%). 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 16 of her last 17 games and has recorded at least one steal in 14 of 20 games. She has also notched two blocks in eight of her last 17 games as her quick leaping ability has caused problems for opposing bigs. Through 20 career games, Hemphill is averaging 7.4 points, a team-high 7.5 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 1.3 blocks while notching double digit rebounds a team-best four times this season. Her 2.7 offensive rebounds/game ranks 9th in the MAC so far this season.
BENCH MAKES IMPACT IN WIN AT WMU
The Buffalo bench had three straight quiet games before breaking out on Saturday to help UB secure the road win at WMU. The bench players combined for 17 points as Mariah Suchan finished off her strong game with eight points and five rebounds while Brittany Morrison netted four points, a team-high nine rebounds and three steals across 21 minutes. The UB bench outscored the Broncos bench 17-7 for the game as UB improved to 12-2 when their bench outscores their opponents bench.
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 172-of-227 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 (71.5%) as she has gone 178-for-249.
