Friday, March 15
Cleveland, Ohio
10:00am
19-12,10-8MAC
77
vs
74
Toledo (Semifinals)
26-5,17-1MAC
1
2
3
4
OT 1
F
Buffalo
19
14
20
14
10
77
Toledo
13
12
13
29
7
74
Bulls Stun Top-Seed Toledo, Advance to MAC Title Game
3/15/2024 1:38:00 PM | Women's Basketball
CLEVELAND, OH – The University at Buffalo women's basketball team knocked off top-seeded Toledo, 77-74, in overtime in the semifinals of the Mid-American Conference Tournament at Cleveland's Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Friday afternoon. The Bulls will play for their fourth MAC Tournament title and third in the last six years on Saturday morning.
Chellia Watson, the nation's sixth-leading scorer, led the Bulls with 30 points, including six three-pointers. Her sixth three of the day tied the game at 67 with 49 seconds left in regulation and forced overtime. The first-team All-MAC guard added four rebounds, five assists and a career-high five steals.
The Bulls never trailed in overtime. Kirsten Lewis-Williams hit a layup with 1:08 left to put the Bulls up 74-72. Clinging to a two-point lead, Hattie Ogden grabbed a defensive rebound with 28 seconds left. Toledo then fouled Paula Lopez and the freshman calmly drained both free throws to give UB a 76-72 lead with 23 seconds left.
Following a Toledo basket to cut the lead to two, Ogden was fouled and made one of two free throws to extend the UB lead to three with just eight seconds left. Toledo missed a game-tying three-pointer in the closing seconds and the Bulls celebrated.
Buffalo jumped out to a 9-0 lead and held the nine-point advantage at halftime. The third of Watson's three third-quarter three-pointers helped the Bulls build a 15-point cushion after three quarters of play.
However, aided by the press, Toledo stormed back and took its first lead of the game, 65-64, with 1:41 left in the fourth quarter. The Rockets capitalized on a UB turnover to take a 67-64 lead with 1:08 left. That's when Watson stepped up and drained her sixth three-pointer of the game to knot the contest at 67. Timely defense down the stretch helped the Bulls force overtime.
Every Bull that played in the game aided in the victory. Lewis-Williams scored 15 points, including 9-of-10 from the free throw line. Ogden finished with 10 points including three three-pointers. Kiara Johnson scored eight points on 4-of-4 shooting. Rana Elhusseini had six points and seven rebounds and Alexis Davis had six points and six rebounds.
The difference in the game was the three-point shot. UB shot 11-of-22 from the beyond the arc while Toledo was just 6-of-25. The Bulls also held MAC Player of the Year Sophia Wiard to just two points, her worst performance of the season.
The Bulls will play the winner of the Ball State vs. Kent State game on Saturday morning at 11 am.
Chellia Watson, the nation's sixth-leading scorer, led the Bulls with 30 points, including six three-pointers. Her sixth three of the day tied the game at 67 with 49 seconds left in regulation and forced overtime. The first-team All-MAC guard added four rebounds, five assists and a career-high five steals.
The Bulls never trailed in overtime. Kirsten Lewis-Williams hit a layup with 1:08 left to put the Bulls up 74-72. Clinging to a two-point lead, Hattie Ogden grabbed a defensive rebound with 28 seconds left. Toledo then fouled Paula Lopez and the freshman calmly drained both free throws to give UB a 76-72 lead with 23 seconds left.
Following a Toledo basket to cut the lead to two, Ogden was fouled and made one of two free throws to extend the UB lead to three with just eight seconds left. Toledo missed a game-tying three-pointer in the closing seconds and the Bulls celebrated.
Buffalo jumped out to a 9-0 lead and held the nine-point advantage at halftime. The third of Watson's three third-quarter three-pointers helped the Bulls build a 15-point cushion after three quarters of play.
However, aided by the press, Toledo stormed back and took its first lead of the game, 65-64, with 1:41 left in the fourth quarter. The Rockets capitalized on a UB turnover to take a 67-64 lead with 1:08 left. That's when Watson stepped up and drained her sixth three-pointer of the game to knot the contest at 67. Timely defense down the stretch helped the Bulls force overtime.
Every Bull that played in the game aided in the victory. Lewis-Williams scored 15 points, including 9-of-10 from the free throw line. Ogden finished with 10 points including three three-pointers. Kiara Johnson scored eight points on 4-of-4 shooting. Rana Elhusseini had six points and seven rebounds and Alexis Davis had six points and six rebounds.
The difference in the game was the three-point shot. UB shot 11-of-22 from the beyond the arc while Toledo was just 6-of-25. The Bulls also held MAC Player of the Year Sophia Wiard to just two points, her worst performance of the season.
The Bulls will play the winner of the Ball State vs. Kent State game on Saturday morning at 11 am.
Team Stats
UB
UT
FG%
.436
.406
3FG%
.500
.240
FT%
.900
.800
RB
34
39
TO
17
14
STL
8
10
Game Leaders
Pts
30
FGM
10
3FGM
6
FTM
4
Pts
15
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
9
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G/F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballForward
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG/F
/ Women's BasketballGuard
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