Thursday, February 24
DeKalb, IL
8:00 PM
18-8,12-4MAC
79
at
68
Northern Illinois
8-19,5-12MAC
1
2
F
Buffalo
37
42
79
Northern Ill.
32
36
68
Bulls Close Out Road Trip With Eighth Straight Win
2/24/2022 10:43:00 PM | Men's Basketball
DEKALB, IL – The University at Buffalo men's basketball team kept its winning streak alive on Thursday night as the Bulls defeated Northern Illinois, 79-68, at the Convocation Center. The win improves the Bulls to 18-8 on the season 12-4 in MAC play.
Senior Josh Mballa joined the 1,000-point club in the game on his second basket of the night. He becomes the 26th player in school history to score 1,000 career points and the fourth Buffalo player to do it this season.
The Bulls used a strong second half, shooting just under 52% from the floor over the final 20 minutes of action. It was a struggle to begin the night as the Bulls were unable to click offensively, allowing the host Huskies to jump out to a 22-16 lead with 6:50 left in the first half. Northern Illinois continued to lead 28-24 when a three from sophomore David Skogman cut the deficit to one. Over the final two minutes of the first half, the Bulls' defense hunkered down and held NIU scoreless for the remainder of the half while the Bulls scored six straight, taking a 37-32 lead into the break.
Senior Jeenathan Williams scored 18 of his game high 28 points in the second half as the Bulls built there lead up to double figures. A layup from freshman Curtis Jones with 9:12 left gave the Bulls their largest lead of the night at 62-46.
The Huskies would cut the deficit to seven, but five straight points from Williams ignited a 7-0 run as Buffalo rebuilt a 14-point advantage and went on to win by 11.
Williams had five boards and three assists to go along with his game-high 28 points. Ronaldo Segu finished with 19 points, six assists, two blocks and two steals.
Mballa finished with 14 points, while Skogman added 10 points and a game-high nine rebounds.
Maceo Jack finished with six points and Jones added two. Tra'von Fagan finished with eight rebounds off the bench and LaQuill Hardnett had six rebounds, five of those coming in the first half.
As a team, the Bulls held a 45-33 advantage on the glass. UB, which leads the MAC in three-point field goal percentage, allowed NIU to shoot just 27.8% from behind the arc, including 0-for-7 in the second half.
The Bulls and Huskies will be right back in action against each other on Saturday afternoon in Buffalo. Tip off is set for 2:00 pm at Alumni Arena.
Senior Josh Mballa joined the 1,000-point club in the game on his second basket of the night. He becomes the 26th player in school history to score 1,000 career points and the fourth Buffalo player to do it this season.
The Bulls used a strong second half, shooting just under 52% from the floor over the final 20 minutes of action. It was a struggle to begin the night as the Bulls were unable to click offensively, allowing the host Huskies to jump out to a 22-16 lead with 6:50 left in the first half. Northern Illinois continued to lead 28-24 when a three from sophomore David Skogman cut the deficit to one. Over the final two minutes of the first half, the Bulls' defense hunkered down and held NIU scoreless for the remainder of the half while the Bulls scored six straight, taking a 37-32 lead into the break.
Senior Jeenathan Williams scored 18 of his game high 28 points in the second half as the Bulls built there lead up to double figures. A layup from freshman Curtis Jones with 9:12 left gave the Bulls their largest lead of the night at 62-46.
The Huskies would cut the deficit to seven, but five straight points from Williams ignited a 7-0 run as Buffalo rebuilt a 14-point advantage and went on to win by 11.
Williams had five boards and three assists to go along with his game-high 28 points. Ronaldo Segu finished with 19 points, six assists, two blocks and two steals.
Mballa finished with 14 points, while Skogman added 10 points and a game-high nine rebounds.
Maceo Jack finished with six points and Jones added two. Tra'von Fagan finished with eight rebounds off the bench and LaQuill Hardnett had six rebounds, five of those coming in the first half.
As a team, the Bulls held a 45-33 advantage on the glass. UB, which leads the MAC in three-point field goal percentage, allowed NIU to shoot just 27.8% from behind the arc, including 0-for-7 in the second half.
The Bulls and Huskies will be right back in action against each other on Saturday afternoon in Buffalo. Tip off is set for 2:00 pm at Alumni Arena.
Team Stats
UB
NIU
FG%
.475
.446
3FG%
.333
.278
FT%
.600
.556
RB
45
33
TO
11
9
STL
5
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
28
FGM
12
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
19
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
8
Pts
14
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
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Guard
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Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Center
/ Men's Basketball
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