When the UB women's basketball team looks back on the Toledo game, instead of being able to savor a great road win, they will have to wonder what could have been. Toledo (11-5, 4-1 MAC) won Wednesday's game 71-56 in front of 2,391 fans at Savage Hall. The Rockets fans would have went home disappointed if it weren't for 25 UB turnovers that led to 24 Toledo points.
"I'm concerned with a lack of focus," said head coach Cheryl Dozier. "We need to take better care of the ball and keep teams from getting offensive rebounds."
The most disappointing aspect of this loss for the Bulls (9-6, 1-3 MAC) would be the squandered performance of sophomore guard Erin Lawrenson. Lawrenson buried six 3-pointers for a game-high 18 points, tying her career record for three's in a game.
Even Lawrenson's outside shooting couldn't help the problems that the Bulls had with Toledo's pressure game in the second half.
"We didn't do well with our press breaks," said Dozier. "That is something we'll be working on in practice, along with rebounding."
UB led the majority of this game and was up by as many as ten points in the first half. Lawrenson opened the scoring with a three-pointer on the first possession of the game. It then turned into a game of runs.
The Rockets used an 11-4 run later in the half, capped by back-to-back 3-pointers, to get within two, 26-24, at the 6:30 mark. The Bulls, however, followed with a 7-2 run to extend their lead back to seven, 33-26, with 4:36 to play. A 7-0 run by the Rockets tied the score, but Buffalo went back on top by two, 35-33, when junior forward Jessica Kochendorfer nailed a jumper at the buzzer to end the half.
Toledo came out with a press defense in the second and took a 38-35 lead thanks to a 6-0 run. A 3-pointer by Lawrenson later put the Bulls back on top, 40-39, with 16:33 to play, and the game remained tight for the next few minutes.
"There was a point in the game were both teams kept turning the ball over," said Dozier. "Toledo handed it to us, but we didn't take it."
After Toledo built a five-point lead, 50-45, Lawrenson nailed her final three of the night to get Buffalo within two, but that was as close as they would get. Toledo scored 16 points off of Buffalo turnovers in the second half to secure the win.
The women will have to forget about this loss as quickly as possible to prepare for Miami at 7 p.m. this Saturday at Alumni arena. Miami (8-8, 3-2 MAC) is coming to UB in the middle of a tough stretch for the Bulls. UB plays three tough MAC teams in a six-day span, including Miami, who the Bulls lost to twice last season.
The problems with rebounding and turnovers will be a focus for Dozier this weekend.
"We want to work on being more fluent in breaking pressure," said Dozier. "Moving without the ball and getting a body on people (when rebounding), and we want to take care of our house.
Miami is a similar team to UB, running a lot of the same sets and plays.
Unfortunately for the Bulls, they are running up against Cusick at the wrong time. Miami's leading scorer, the only RedHawk averaging in double figures at 16.3 points per game, was going through a four-game slump after suffering an injured ankle in late December. She, however, broke out last week, scoring a game-high 29 points against Ohio on Jan. 14.
The RedHawks squad also features good 3-point shooting. Miami ranks third in the MAC in 3-pointers made and takes the most attempts of any team in the conference. Cusick leads the team in threes, but Melanie Koslowski and Nicole Motto each have more than 20 3-pointers coming off the bench.
Also, Miami is No. 2 in the conference in offensive rebounding. The RedHawks score nearly 20 percent of their points on second chance opportunities.
Those points will be critical for the Bulls, one of the top MAC teams in points allowed. If they can hold Miami off the glass there is a good chance they can win. The RedHawks are 8-1 when scoring more than 70 points, but are 0-6 when scoring less than 70.
Unfortunately, the long road home from Toledo has left UB with just one day (today) to practice. Dozier says they will have to make the most of it.
"(Leading into the Toledo game) our practices weren't as good as they've been," said Dozier. "I'm a coach that believes that you play how you practice. Execution is the key. We need a full forty minutes of execution."
