Bulls Zip Past Akron, 86-60, on Wednesday

Wednesday, March 2

Akron, OH

7:00 PM

21-8,15-4MAC

Akron

15-10,12-7MAC

Buffalo

Akron

Bulls Zip Past Akron, 86-60, on Wednesday

3/2/2022 9:45:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

AKRON, OHIO – Four Bulls scored in double figures as the University at Buffalo women's basketball team rolled to an 86-60 win over Akron at James A. Rhodes Arena on Wednesday night. With the win the Bulls improve to 21-8 overall and 15-4 in league play and lock up the number two seed in next week's Mid-American Conference Tournament.

The Bulls shot a season-best 59.7% from the floor, including 71.4% in the fourth quarter, in the win. Junior guard Dyaisha Fair led all scorers with 25 points to go with six assists and four steals. Senior Adebola Adeyeye scored a career-high with 17 points while Summer Hemphill recorded her third straight double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Junior Loren Christie also scored in double figures with 10 points.

It was a back-and-forth affair to start as the two teams were knotted at eight in the early going. The Bulls began to attack the glass and retook the lead, 12-11, at the 4:08 mark and UB extended their run on a layup by Adeyeye and a transition jumper from Fair to take an 18-13 lead and force an Akron timeout with just over two minutes to go in the quarter. Adeyeye added another layup at the buzzer to give the Bulls a 22-15 lead at the end of the first.

The Bulls had great ball movement to start the second quarter as Georgia Woolley hit Hemphill for a textbook fastbreak bucket. Both offenses then stalled for a stretch before Christie scored on three straight possessions to put UB up nine at the media timeout. The Zips answered with a 9-2 run to cut the UB lead to two at the two-minute mark before Christie knocked down a 15-footer and Fair converted a pair of free throws to put UB up six with just under a minute to play and they led 38-33 at the break.

After a slow start to the third quarter, Adeyeye powered up for a bucket plus the foul and later, Fair and Woolley came up back-to-back steals and converted on the fastbreak opportunities to cap a 6-0 run in just over a minute and put UB up 48-40 at the 6:17 mark. The Bulls extended the run to 11-2 on five straight points from Fair to take a 53-42 lead at the media timeout. Jazmine Young gave the Bulls a lift out of the timeout as she drained a corner three to put UB up 14. Hemphill then went into attack mode as she scored four straight points to give the Bulls a 65-51 lead at the end of the third.

The teams traded baskets early in the fourth before Woolley hit a rim-running Hemphill in stride for a beautiful fastbreak layup and then Young came up with the steal and found Fair in transition to give the Bulls a 73-57 lead and force an Akron timeout at the 5:57 mark. Fair continued to attack as she sliced into the lane for two and later got the steal and hit a spot up triple to put UB up 20 with just over four minutes to play and the UB defense held the Zips to just one made field goal the rest of the way to seal the victory.

Woolley scored seven points in addition to five assists and a career-best six steals, while Young added nine points. The Bulls are now a perfect 11-0 on the season, and 53-7 since the 2017-18 season, when scoring 80 or more points. Buffalo dominated the paint for the third straight game as they held the 58-32 edge inside while also scoring 29 points off Akron turnovers and 17 fastbreak points.

"Our seniors want this season to last a long time," said head coach Felisha Legette-Jack. "The play of Summer and Ade was tremendous down low. Loren started us out again with her tenacity of purpose and then in the second half Dyaisha did what she does, and Georgia almost had a triple double. Everyone is playing well and when you add in a Jazmine who had the highest plus-minus tonight, that says that we are getting better as the season gets longer."

Buffalo concludes the regular season on Saturday, March 5, when they welcome Bowling Green to Alumni Arena. Tip off is at 2pm and it will be senior day for UB's senior class.