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Saturday, November 29
Buffalo, N.Y.
6 p.m.
University at Buffalo
at
Canisius
Photo by: Paul Hokanson/UB Athletics
Bulls Visit Canisius for Main Street Showdown on Saturday Night
11/28/2025 7:40:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BUFFALO, N.Y. – The University at Buffalo men's basketball program (7-0, 0-0 MAC) are on the road for their third straight including four of the next five away from Alumni Arena. The Bulls will play the Canisius Golden Griffins (4-3, 0-0 MAAC) on Saturday evening from the Koessler Athletic Center with tip-off coming at 6 p.m. on ESPN+. Josh Whetzel and Bob Gaughan will be on the radio call on Buffalo 1520/Rochester 1280 and on the Varsity Network App.
The Golden Griffins lead the all-time series, 30-21, but the Bulls are winners of four of the last five.
LAST TIME OUT
The Bulls are coming off a 73-71 victory over the Bucknell Bison on Wednesday afternoon to close out the Skechers Fort Myers Tip-Off. With the win, the Bulls improved to 7-0 for just the second time in Division I history since 1991-92. The only other time the Bulls started 7-0 came in the historic 2018-19 season.
In the win, Daniel Freitag hit the game winner at the buzzer as he went on to score 18 points. He led the team with nine rebounds, three assists and a pair of blocks. All of Freitag's rebounds came on the defensive end. Angelo Brizzi led the Bulls with a career-high 25 points and four steals. Brizzi was nails at the free throw line as he made all 10 of his attempts. Noah Batchelor shot 4-of-7 from the floor, good for 11 points. He was also 3-of-6 from three and added five rebounds. Ezra McKenna snatched eight rebounds to go with his six points and three steals. He also had a game-high +/- of +11.
ABOUT THE GOLDEN GRIFFINS
• Canisius Head Coach Jim Christian is in his second year at the helm for the Golden Griffins. In his time at Canisius, he has posted a 7-31 (.184) overall record. Prior to Canisius, he spent time at Kent State (2002-08), TCU (2008-12), Ohio (2012-14) and Boston College (2014-21).
• The Golden Griffins were selected 13th in the 13-team league in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Preseason Poll. Last season, they went 13-28 overall and 3-17 in conference play.
• The Golden Griffins are 48th in the country in three-point defense at .278.
THE BULL-ETIN BOARD
• Daniel Freitag was tabbed MAC Player of the Week on Monday afternoon following his 33-point performance against Vermont.
• Buffalo received one AP Top-25 vote in Monday's poll. The last time they received votes was in the final poll of the 2018-19 season when they finished at No. 15.
• The Bulls moved to No. 13 in the College Insider Mid-Major Top-25 poll on Monday evening.
• Buffalo has forced 8+ turnovers in every game to open the season. Buffalo's +3.1 turnover margin average is fifth in the MAC.
• The Bulls average a MAC-best 31.9 free throw attempts and 23.6 free throws made per game. Both marks are top-10 in the NCAA.
• Noah Batchelor leads the Bulls with the best +/- on the team at +85.
• Daniel Freitag is second in the Mid-American Conference in scoring with 20.0 ppg. He's only behind Kent State's Delrecco Gillespie (20.3 ppg). Overall in the NCAA, he ranks 42nd in scoring.
• Daniel Freitag has accounted for 25.0% of Buffalo's points on the season as he's scored 140 of Buffalo's 559 points.
• Daniel Freitag's 33-point performance against the Vermont Catamounts is the third-most points scored in the MAC in a single game.
• Daniel Freitag has attempted the most free throws in the NCAA with 70.
• Ryan Sabol has now made 157 career three-pointers, passing Jeremy Harris (154, 2017-19) for seventh all-time in program history.
• Per College Basketball Reference, the Bulls are 53rd in Division I in offensive rating. In points produced per 100 possessions, the Bulls are averaging 119.9. This is the third best mark amongst MAC programs behind Akron (11th, 128.2) and Miami (OH) (17th, 127.3).
• The Bulls are 10-8 all-time on Nov. 29th. They last played on this date in 2023 when they Bulls played at No. 22 James Madison. The Dukes won the contest, 81-66. They also played at No. 10 Creighton in 2016 where the Blue Jays took the game, 93-72.
• A Buffalo win would give the Bulls just their second 8-0 start in their Division I modern era since 1991. The only other 8-0 start came in the 2018-19 season when the nationally ranked Bulls started 11-0. The Bulls would improve to 22-30 all-time against the Golden Griffins and 73-110 against teams from the MAAC.
• The Bulls would drop to 7-1 on the season with a loss. Buffalo would drop to 21-31 against Canisius and 72-111 against teams from the MAAC.
• As of Nov. 28th, the Bulls are just one of 17 Division I programs that are undefeated with at least seven wins. They are the only MAC program that is undefeated with seven wins.
• Ezra McKenna is just two points shy of reaching 1,600 points in his collegiate career. Ryan Sabol is nine points away from 800 points in the Blue and White. He would be the 48th player in program history to reach 800 points.
• The Bulls check in at No. 13 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top-25 poll on the evening of Monday, Nov. 24th. UB was ranked No. 24 in last week's poll. Teams in the poll on Buffalo's schedule are No. 5 Miami (OH), No. 7 Akron (1), No. 12 Kent State, RV Vermont (35), Southern Miss (3), Toledo (3), Bowling Green (1).
• In the Field of 68 Mid-Major Poll on Thursday, Nov. 20th, the Bulls made their debut at No. 7.
• Through seven games, the Bulls have had seven 20-point performances by four different players. To open the season, Ryan Sabol scored 32 points against Southern Miss. and then scored 20 at DePaul. Against Green Bay, both Derrick Talton Jr. and Daniel Freitag scored 21 and 20, respectfully. In UB's last two games against RIT and Vermont, Freitag has scored a combined 60 points. He buried a career-high 33 points against the Catamounts. Angelo Brizzi scored a career-high 25 points against Bucknell.
• Junior guard Ryan Sabol is Halcovage's longest tenured player. Sabol has played in every collegiate game during his time with the Bulls, including 64 starts.
• Buffalo's Division I non-conference opponents are 30-27 (.526) this season.
• Following their win over VMI, under Halcovage, the Bulls are 17-0 when leading with 5:00 to go.
• Since 2023-24, the Bulls are 13-1 when they score at least 80 points including a 13-game win streak. In their wins, they've outscored the opposition by an average margin of 9.0 points.
• UB is just three wins away from reaching program win no. 1,300. They would be the final MAC school to reach this milestone.
• Through four games, Noah Batchelor has the best +/- on the team at +82. Daniel Freitag is behind Batchelor at +50 on the season.
• In the Blue Ribbon MAC Preseason Forecast, sophomore transfer Daniel Freitag was named MAC Newcomer of the Year.
• Ryan Sabol, who posted 14.4 points per game and knocked down 79 3-pointers, comes back to Buffalo as Head Coach George Halcovage III's only third-year player. During his sophomore campaign, Sabol became the fastest player in program history to 100 made 3-pointers as he did so in just 42 games. He's currently eighth all-time in made threes with 157.
• Headed into last season, the Bulls only had 188 collegiate games of experience played as they welcomed eight freshmen. This year the Bulls have 600 games played in college, good for a 412-game difference. The only other program with a biggest difference in games played was San Diego as they went from 425 games played in 2024-25 to 900 this season, a difference of 475.
• Unlike last year when the Bulls had eight freshmen on the roster, they brought in six transfers to Buffalo. Ezra McKenna (Mobile), Derrick Talton Jr. (Oklahoma Wesleyan) and Angelo Brizzi (Longwood) are all grad transfers. Kyle Jones (St. Thomas Aquinas) is a red-shirt junior as Mikhail Pocknett (King) and Daniel Freitag are a junior and sophomore, respectfully. In total, they've scored a combined 5,259 points in their college careers. They have also combined for a 352-158 overall record and a .690 win percentage prior to Buffalo.
• The Bulls and the Miami RedHawks are the only MAC programs to return their leading scorers and rebounders from last season. Ryan Sabol led the Bulls with 14.4 ppg as Noah Batchelor averaged 6.1 rpg. Miami's Peter Suder (13.7 ppg) and Antwone Woolfolk (5.4 rpg) return to the court this season for the RedHawks.
• Junior forward transfer Mikhail Pocknett led all of Division II last season in free throws attempted with 289 while at King. The next closest player attempted 260 free throws.
For all the latest on UB men's basketball, follow @UBuffaloMBB on Twitter/X, @ubuffalo_mbb on Instagram and like the UB Men's Basketball Facebook page.
Click here for ticket information.
Click here for information on the Bulls Championship Fund and how you can help UB Athletics.
The Golden Griffins lead the all-time series, 30-21, but the Bulls are winners of four of the last five.
LAST TIME OUT
The Bulls are coming off a 73-71 victory over the Bucknell Bison on Wednesday afternoon to close out the Skechers Fort Myers Tip-Off. With the win, the Bulls improved to 7-0 for just the second time in Division I history since 1991-92. The only other time the Bulls started 7-0 came in the historic 2018-19 season.
In the win, Daniel Freitag hit the game winner at the buzzer as he went on to score 18 points. He led the team with nine rebounds, three assists and a pair of blocks. All of Freitag's rebounds came on the defensive end. Angelo Brizzi led the Bulls with a career-high 25 points and four steals. Brizzi was nails at the free throw line as he made all 10 of his attempts. Noah Batchelor shot 4-of-7 from the floor, good for 11 points. He was also 3-of-6 from three and added five rebounds. Ezra McKenna snatched eight rebounds to go with his six points and three steals. He also had a game-high +/- of +11.
ABOUT THE GOLDEN GRIFFINS
• Canisius Head Coach Jim Christian is in his second year at the helm for the Golden Griffins. In his time at Canisius, he has posted a 7-31 (.184) overall record. Prior to Canisius, he spent time at Kent State (2002-08), TCU (2008-12), Ohio (2012-14) and Boston College (2014-21).
• The Golden Griffins were selected 13th in the 13-team league in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Preseason Poll. Last season, they went 13-28 overall and 3-17 in conference play.
• The Golden Griffins are 48th in the country in three-point defense at .278.
THE BULL-ETIN BOARD
• Daniel Freitag was tabbed MAC Player of the Week on Monday afternoon following his 33-point performance against Vermont.
• Buffalo received one AP Top-25 vote in Monday's poll. The last time they received votes was in the final poll of the 2018-19 season when they finished at No. 15.
• The Bulls moved to No. 13 in the College Insider Mid-Major Top-25 poll on Monday evening.
• Buffalo has forced 8+ turnovers in every game to open the season. Buffalo's +3.1 turnover margin average is fifth in the MAC.
• The Bulls average a MAC-best 31.9 free throw attempts and 23.6 free throws made per game. Both marks are top-10 in the NCAA.
• Noah Batchelor leads the Bulls with the best +/- on the team at +85.
• Daniel Freitag is second in the Mid-American Conference in scoring with 20.0 ppg. He's only behind Kent State's Delrecco Gillespie (20.3 ppg). Overall in the NCAA, he ranks 42nd in scoring.
• Daniel Freitag has accounted for 25.0% of Buffalo's points on the season as he's scored 140 of Buffalo's 559 points.
• Daniel Freitag's 33-point performance against the Vermont Catamounts is the third-most points scored in the MAC in a single game.
• Daniel Freitag has attempted the most free throws in the NCAA with 70.
• Ryan Sabol has now made 157 career three-pointers, passing Jeremy Harris (154, 2017-19) for seventh all-time in program history.
• Per College Basketball Reference, the Bulls are 53rd in Division I in offensive rating. In points produced per 100 possessions, the Bulls are averaging 119.9. This is the third best mark amongst MAC programs behind Akron (11th, 128.2) and Miami (OH) (17th, 127.3).
• The Bulls are 10-8 all-time on Nov. 29th. They last played on this date in 2023 when they Bulls played at No. 22 James Madison. The Dukes won the contest, 81-66. They also played at No. 10 Creighton in 2016 where the Blue Jays took the game, 93-72.
• A Buffalo win would give the Bulls just their second 8-0 start in their Division I modern era since 1991. The only other 8-0 start came in the 2018-19 season when the nationally ranked Bulls started 11-0. The Bulls would improve to 22-30 all-time against the Golden Griffins and 73-110 against teams from the MAAC.
• The Bulls would drop to 7-1 on the season with a loss. Buffalo would drop to 21-31 against Canisius and 72-111 against teams from the MAAC.
• As of Nov. 28th, the Bulls are just one of 17 Division I programs that are undefeated with at least seven wins. They are the only MAC program that is undefeated with seven wins.
• Ezra McKenna is just two points shy of reaching 1,600 points in his collegiate career. Ryan Sabol is nine points away from 800 points in the Blue and White. He would be the 48th player in program history to reach 800 points.
• The Bulls check in at No. 13 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top-25 poll on the evening of Monday, Nov. 24th. UB was ranked No. 24 in last week's poll. Teams in the poll on Buffalo's schedule are No. 5 Miami (OH), No. 7 Akron (1), No. 12 Kent State, RV Vermont (35), Southern Miss (3), Toledo (3), Bowling Green (1).
• In the Field of 68 Mid-Major Poll on Thursday, Nov. 20th, the Bulls made their debut at No. 7.
• Through seven games, the Bulls have had seven 20-point performances by four different players. To open the season, Ryan Sabol scored 32 points against Southern Miss. and then scored 20 at DePaul. Against Green Bay, both Derrick Talton Jr. and Daniel Freitag scored 21 and 20, respectfully. In UB's last two games against RIT and Vermont, Freitag has scored a combined 60 points. He buried a career-high 33 points against the Catamounts. Angelo Brizzi scored a career-high 25 points against Bucknell.
• Junior guard Ryan Sabol is Halcovage's longest tenured player. Sabol has played in every collegiate game during his time with the Bulls, including 64 starts.
• Buffalo's Division I non-conference opponents are 30-27 (.526) this season.
• Following their win over VMI, under Halcovage, the Bulls are 17-0 when leading with 5:00 to go.
• Since 2023-24, the Bulls are 13-1 when they score at least 80 points including a 13-game win streak. In their wins, they've outscored the opposition by an average margin of 9.0 points.
• UB is just three wins away from reaching program win no. 1,300. They would be the final MAC school to reach this milestone.
• Through four games, Noah Batchelor has the best +/- on the team at +82. Daniel Freitag is behind Batchelor at +50 on the season.
• In the Blue Ribbon MAC Preseason Forecast, sophomore transfer Daniel Freitag was named MAC Newcomer of the Year.
• Ryan Sabol, who posted 14.4 points per game and knocked down 79 3-pointers, comes back to Buffalo as Head Coach George Halcovage III's only third-year player. During his sophomore campaign, Sabol became the fastest player in program history to 100 made 3-pointers as he did so in just 42 games. He's currently eighth all-time in made threes with 157.
• Headed into last season, the Bulls only had 188 collegiate games of experience played as they welcomed eight freshmen. This year the Bulls have 600 games played in college, good for a 412-game difference. The only other program with a biggest difference in games played was San Diego as they went from 425 games played in 2024-25 to 900 this season, a difference of 475.
• Unlike last year when the Bulls had eight freshmen on the roster, they brought in six transfers to Buffalo. Ezra McKenna (Mobile), Derrick Talton Jr. (Oklahoma Wesleyan) and Angelo Brizzi (Longwood) are all grad transfers. Kyle Jones (St. Thomas Aquinas) is a red-shirt junior as Mikhail Pocknett (King) and Daniel Freitag are a junior and sophomore, respectfully. In total, they've scored a combined 5,259 points in their college careers. They have also combined for a 352-158 overall record and a .690 win percentage prior to Buffalo.
• The Bulls and the Miami RedHawks are the only MAC programs to return their leading scorers and rebounders from last season. Ryan Sabol led the Bulls with 14.4 ppg as Noah Batchelor averaged 6.1 rpg. Miami's Peter Suder (13.7 ppg) and Antwone Woolfolk (5.4 rpg) return to the court this season for the RedHawks.
• Junior forward transfer Mikhail Pocknett led all of Division II last season in free throws attempted with 289 while at King. The next closest player attempted 260 free throws.
For all the latest on UB men's basketball, follow @UBuffaloMBB on Twitter/X, @ubuffalo_mbb on Instagram and like the UB Men's Basketball Facebook page.
Click here for ticket information.
Click here for information on the Bulls Championship Fund and how you can help UB Athletics.
Players Mentioned
Guard/Forward
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Guard
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Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard/Forward
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Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
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Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
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