Akron
Bulls To Begin Final Homestand On Tuesday Afternoon
3/1/2021 4:20:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Buffalo (12-7, 10-5 MAC) vs. Akron (14-6, 12-5 MAC)
March 2, 2021
Alumni Arena (Buffalo, NY) - 2:00 pm
Bulls on the Air
Buffalo - ESPN 1520
Television
ESPN3
10 Things To Know About Today's Game
1. The Bulls begin a two-game homestand on Tuesday against Akron as Buffalo looks to build on its current three-game winning streak. Buffalo was perfect last week, playing three games in five days, including two of those on the road.
2. Believe it or not, Tuesday's game will actually be the first meeting this season between the Bulls and the Akron Zips. The two teams were scheduled to play in the MAC opener on Jan. 1, but that game was postponed due to COVID protocols and has not been made up. This will be the first time since Buffalo's first year in the league in 1998-99 that the Bulls and Zips will meet just once in the regular season.
3. The Bulls have been dominating in the paint in the last three games as UB is outscoring its opponents, 176-106. UB has scored at least 50 points in the paint during each of the three games, including 74 in the win at Northern Illinois.
4. Buffalo is currently fourth in the league standings, but is tied in the loss column with Kent State, Akron, and Ohio. If Buffalo wins both games this week, it will finish as the number two seed.
5. After leading the nation in rebounding a year ago, Buffalo again leads the country in that category, averaging 43.8 boards per contest. Junior Josh Mballa is 20th in the nation at 10.1 boards per game, one of three UB players with 5.6 boards or more. The Bulls are third in the nation in offensive rebounds, led by Mballa who is fifth nationally. No team nationally has finished a season averaging 44.0 or more rebounds since Quinnipiac averaged 45.37 during the 2014-15 season.
6. Buffalo finished the month of a February with a 6-1 record, outscoring its opponents by an average of 18.0 points per game. All five starters averaged in double figures during the month, while Buffalo averaged 46.1 rebounds per game, outrebounding opponents by an average of 14.3 rebounds per game.
7. Since joining the starting lineup at the beginning of February, sophomore LaQuill Hardnett has missed just one shot from the field, as he is 23-of-24, including hitting his first three career three-pointers. Hardnett had a new career high 16 points against the Huskies, a mark that last for just one game as he scored 20 points and had 10 rebounds against Central Michigan, his first career double-double. Hardnett is the 20th player, and 15th against a D-I opponent this year to have at least 20 points without missing a shot from the field.
8. Senior Jayvon Graves is currently 11th in school in scoring with 1,356 points. He is 29 points shy of Louis Campbell (1998-02) for 10th place on the list. On Saturday afternoon, Graves will play in his 126th career game, which will put him alone for sixth place in school history.
9. Akron is fifth in the MAC in three point field goal percentage at 34.1%. UB is first in the MAC and ninth nationally in three-point field goal defense.
10. The Bulls have the seventh shortest average possession length according to KenPom.com at 14.7 seconds.
Bulls To Begin Final Homestand On Tuesday Afternoon
The University at Buffalo men's basketball team looks for their fourth straight win and a seventh win in eight games on Tuesday afternoon when the Bulls welcome Akron to Alumni Arena. Buffalo won three games in a five day period last week, including two of those on the road. The most recent win was an 86-66 victory over Ohio, Buffalo's largest ever win at the Convocation Center. Junior Josh Mballa led the Bulls with 23 points, 19 of those coming in the first half. Senior David Nickelberry added a career high 16 points off the bench.
Akron is looking to snap a two-game losing streak as the Zips come to Alumni Arena for the first time. This will be the latest in a year since Buffalo joined the MAC that it will play the Zips.
Can You Spare Me A Dime?
Buffalo recorded 27 assists on Jan. 21 against Eastern Michigan, its highest total since also recording 27 against Ohio on Feb. 24, 2018. In the win over the Eagles, five UB players had four of more assists as UB had 27 assists on 34 made baskets (79.4%).
Three players had five assists in the game, all coming from the forward position, as sophomore LaQuill Hardnett had a career high five dimes, while Jeenathan Williams and Josh Mballa also finished with five assists.
The 27 assists are also the most by a Mid-American Conference team this season. The Bulls had 23 assists in the win over Miami, including 16 combined from junior Ronaldo Segu and senior Jayvon Graves. It was the first time since the 2018 season that two UB players have combined for 16 or more assists.
Giving 100%
Buffalo hit the 100-point mark for the first time this season in its 102-74 win at Northern Illinois. It was the first time UB hit 100 points since a 104-98 win at Kent State and the first time they have done it in regulation since scoring 109 against Nazareth on Nov. 11, 2019.
The 102 points are the fifth most scored in a road game in school history and third highest in Division I. Only one time had Buffalo scored more points in a Division I game on the road in regulation and that was against Niagara on Nov. 29, 2017, a 106-87 win.
The 102 points scored are also the most against a Northern Illinois team since Notre Dame scored 108 on Dec. 8, 2007 and UB is the first opponent to score over 100 points in DeKalb in regulation since Akron scored 103 on Feb. 5, 2001.
UB is the third team this season to score 100 or more points with three or fewer three-pointers in a game. Syracuse actually achieved that feat against the Bulls in their overtime win, while UMKC had 138 points with zero three pointers against Greenville. Only Buffalo and Gonzaga have Division I victories in a game where they scored 100 points with 39 or more two-point baskets. Finally, the 102 points score by Buffalo are the most by a Mid-American Conference school against a Division I opponent this season.
Winner, Winner Chicken Dinner
Buffalo continues to be one of the winningest programs in the nation over the last three seasons. Since the 2017-18 season, the Bulls have won 91 games, tied for 16th most in the nation during that time frame. Gonzaga leads the nation with 120 victories since 2017-18 season.
The Bulls have a seven-victory margin on any other team from the Mid-American Conference as Toledo is second in the league with 84 wins, good for a tie for 36th in nation.
The Bulls have won 20 or more games in five of the last six seasons, including a school and Mid-American Conference record 32 games during the 2018-19 season.
Bulls Look To Three-Peat
With last season's Mid-American Conference tournament being canceled due to COVID-19, the Bulls still hold claim to winners of the last two conference tournaments. UB enters this season with a MAC Tournament title in site and if they are successful, Buffalo would become the first program in MAC history to win three straight. The Bulls have also won four of the last five MAC Tournament titles.
In order to achieve this, the Bulls will play in a MAC that has a distinctive new look. Gone are the days of an East and West division as all 12 programs will be seeded from top to bottom. The MAC also moved their league schedule up to 20 games this year, the most UB has played in conference play since joining the league. The first round tournament games at campus sites have also been scrapped with the top eight teams going directly to Cleveland.
Graves Digger
The Bulls are led by senior Jayvon Graves who was named to the preseason All-MAC First Team and locally was named the preseason Big 4 Player of the Year. Graves led the Bulls in scoring last season, averaging 17.1 points per game. He was consistent through out the year, averaging 17.2 points per game in conference action. The highlight of his season came in a double overtime victory at Kent State where Graves scored a career high 33 points.
He begins the 2020-21 season 17th in school history in career scoring with 1,080 points, one of 23 players ever for UB to score 1,000 points in their career. Graves set the UB single-season record last year with 479 field goals attempted. Graves scored 20 points against Towson to open the year and finished with a game-high 23 points against Bowling Green. He finished just shy of a triple-double against Mercyhurst with 13 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists. He added 22 points and seven assists at Syracuse and 17 against Bowling Green and he is now 11th place on Buffalo's all-time scoring list with 1,356 points.
Slam-balla
Junior Josh Mballa had a breakout season last year in his first season with the Bulls after transferring in from Texas Tech. Mballa, who was named a preseason second-team All-MAC and second-team All-Big 4 selection, recorded 308 boards last season, the most in the Modern Era but a Buffalo player and the most by any UB player since Sam Pellom in 1977-78.
Mballa, who returned from a foot injury against Miami, had a career day at Syracuse leading the Bulls with 27 points, going 11-of-18 from the floor. He was even more impressive against Ball State as he finished with 19 points, 19 rebounds, and six assists in the win over the Cardinals. Mballa is one of only two players in the nation this year with that stat line joining Hayden Brown of The Citadel. Mballa is the only one to do it against a Division I opponent. Mballa added 15 rebounds against Bowling Green and he had 22 points and a career-high seven steals against Kent State, tied fourth in school history for steals in a game. He had 22 points, 16 rebounds, and five steals against Ball State, the only such performance in the nation. Mballa finished with 21 points and 12 boards against Northern Illinois. He had 23 points against Ohio, including 19 of those in the first half.
The Sixth Sense
Buffalo has had a knack for developing sixth men of the year something the Bulls have done for the last four years. After Nick Perkins became the first player in NCAA history to be named a league's sixth man for three straight years, the torch was passed last year as junior Ronaldo Segu was honored by the Mid-American Conference after coming off the bench for all 32 games.
The MAC Sixth Man of the Year was first handed out following the 2002-03 season. Since then, the Bulls have won the award five times beginning with Mark Bortz in 2005. Segu had a game-high 18 points against Army West Point, while adding four pilfers. He recorded a new career best in scoring with 23 points at Bowling Green. Segu had 13 points and six assists against Syracuse, including a three that sent the game to overtime. Segu finished with 15 points against Bowling Green and has scored in double figures in 10 of the last 11 games, including 19 points at Kent State and 19 more against Eastern Michigan. Segu, who scored 20 points at Ball State, failed to score in double figures for the first time in nine games on Feb. 6 against Miami. He had a career high 11 assists on Feb. 25 against Central Michigan, notching his first career double-double.
Williams Ready For New Heights
Junior Jeenathan Williams had a career year last season as he finished second on the team in scoring at 11.6 points per game, increasing that to 12.8 in MAC play. A highly touted recruit our of Rochester, NY, Williams played at powerhouse Prolific Prep in Napa Valley, CA before coming to UB. This season, Williams is reunited with one of his teammates from Prolific Prep in walk-on sophomore Lucas Saleh who joined UB after playing last year at Feather River Valley CC.
Williams had a huge start to 2020-21 as he finished with a career high 28 points and a career best 12 rebounds in the win over Towson. He had a career high five assists against Army. Williams, who leads UB in scoring and rebounding, finished with 17 points and 12 boards in the win over Mercyhurst. Williams added a game high 21 points against Miami. He added 19 points, seven rebounds and four assists at Syracuse. Williams had 25 points and a career high 14 rebounds in the win over Western Michigan and he has added 24 points against Eastern Michigan.
Brew Crew
Senior transfer Keishawn Brewton had his waiver approved by the NCAA and played in his first game of the season against Mercyhurst, where he had 11 points. He scored a career high 12 points in the win over Ball State, hitting three shots from behind the arc.
Brewton averaged 14.5 points per game last season at Coastal Carolina. Prior to that he played at Chipola CC under current UB assistant coach Brendan Foley.
Fagan Returns To Lineup
After missing all of last season due to a knee injury, redshirt junior Tra'von Fagan has returned to the Buffalo lineup and will look to provide immediate depth as one of the top options off the bench.
He knocked down his first career three pointer in the season opener to 2020-21 against Towson. Fagan had a career day against Miami with 14 points including a pair of three pointers, one a 35-foot buzzer beater to head into halftime. Fagan followed that up with 11 points in the win over Western Michigan and he has hit five three pointers over the last two games, after having just one in his career to date before that. Fagan had 10 points against Ohio and has scored in double figures in three of the last six games.
David is Goliath
A pair of David's are looking to make a big impact this season in senior David Nickelberry and redshirt freshman David Skogman.
Nickelberry is one of the most versatile players on the UB roster and can play almost anywhere on the court, but at 6-7 he will be a huge mismatch for opposing guards. Nickelberry played in 18 games last season, scoring a career high six points against Nazareth. Prior to joining the Bulls, Nickelberry spent a year at Trinity Valley CC and his freshman season at the University of Memphis. Nickelberry finished with 14 points against Western Michigan and had a career high 16 points against Ohio, his fifth game scoring in double figures.
Skogman sat out his first season at UB as a redshirt, but is a versatile big man who can shoot the three. He made his debut against Mercyhurst and had four points and five boards. He knocked down his first two career three pointers against Miami. He had the best game of his career in the second meeting with the RedHawks with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Skogman had one of the dunks of the year against Northern Illinois finishing with eight points and seven boards against the Huskies.
Sophomores Look To Take Big Leap
UB returns a pair of sophomores who both had some big moments during their freshman campaigns in LaQuill Hardnett and Savion Gallion. Hardnett led the Bulls in field goal percentage at 76.1%, including a stretch where he made 26 of 27 shots from the floor.
This season, Hardnett has again been UB's most efficient scorer from the field. Picking up the start at Ball State, Hardnett responded with 11 points, six rebounds, and three steals. Hardnett has started the last six games for the Bulls and has missed just one shot from the floor since joining the starting lineup. He had a then career high 16 points in the victory over Northern Illinois, but followed that up with 20 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Central Michigan. Hardnett has made 23-of-24 shots from the floor since joining the starting lineup.
Gallion played in 17 games off the bench as a freshman. He had a career high six points against Army West Point this season.
