RedHawks snatch final game from Bulls

Falling to the ills that have plagued them all season, the Bulls played well in spurts but couldn't sustain momentum in Saturday afternoon's 74-65 loss to Miami (Ohio).

Bad turnovers and poor shooting derailed the men's basketball team, and for the first time in three years, Buffalo finished the regular season under .500 in the Mid-American Conference.

"I think some fatigue set in on our guys," said Bulls head coach Reggie Witherspoon. "We need to be able to concentrate when we are fatigued. This is an issue that's going come up every game."

If fatigue was the major problem, the onset came unexpectedly early.

Early in the first half, Buffalo (18-12, 8-10 MAC) led 8-6 on the backs of three-point baskets from junior forward Yassin Idbihi and senior guard Calvin Cage. However, after a jumper from senior guard Roderick Middleton put the Bulls up by three at the 7:59 mark, the RedHawks went on a 12-0 run over the next five and a half minutes to put Miami ahead 26-17 at the 2:27 mark.

The barrage of Miami points came largely in part to second- and third-chance baskets. The RedHawks racked up 20 first-half rebounds, compared to Buffalo's 13.

"We weren't rebounding the ball at all in the first," Witherspoon said. "We got really hurt inside. (Tim) Pollitz did a great job for them and Monty St. Clair did too."

Miami (18-9, 14-4 MAC) went into the half up 30-22 thanks to eight points apiece from junior center St. Clair and sophomore forward Pollitz. The Bulls, on the other hand, shot an abysmal 34.6 percent from the field, as opposed to Miami's 44.8 percent.

The RedHawks came out in the second half and padded their lead, stretching it to 14 at the 16:00 minute mark.

The Bulls found a rhythm in the second half as junior forward Parnell Smith, held scoreless in the first half, scored eight of his 12 points during a 15-2 run that brought Buffalo to within one by a score of 44-43 at the 13:34 mark.

"We challenged him at halftime. He did score some points but we need him full strength," Witherspoon said about Smith. "We can't have him less than 100 percent."

Buffalo seemed to the have all of the momentum when senior forward Mario Jordan found himself open in the offensive end. However, Jordan, fresh off arguably his best two games as a Bull, missed an open dunk and was called for a subsequent blocking foul that helped Miami push the lead to three.

Jordan eventually fouled out with 35 seconds left, ending the game with a team-high nine rebounds and only eight points on 1-for-6 shooting.

With the clock reading 5:58, Buffalo brought the lead down to one with a score of 50-49 after two Cage free throws.

Miami bounced back on the shoulders of Pollitz and senior guard William Hatcher as the two combined to score eight of Miami's next 10 points. The duo gave the RedHawks a seven-point lead with 2:16 left to play in regulation. Miami then went 11-for-12 from the free throw line over the last two minutes to seal the victory.

"We've got some things we have to work on in practice," Witherspoon said.

The RedHawks boasted four players in double figures. Pollitz scored a team-high 20 points to go along with five boards and was joined by Hatcher's 13. St. Clair and junior forward Nathan Peavy both had 10 points. St. Clair had a game-high 13 rebounds as the RedHawks out-rebounded the Bulls 34-24 in front of a senior day crowd of 4,566.

Cage led the game in scoring, posting 22 on 6-for-16 shooting from the field. Cage turned the ball over five times, as did Middleton.

The victory gave Miami the fourth seed in the MAC tournament and earned them a bye in the first round of play. Buffalo, on the other hand, came into the game locked in as the eighth seed and will play host to the Ball State Cardinals on Monday evening at Alumni Arena.

The last time Buffalo and Ball State met, the Cardinals dispatched the Bulls 67-60 in Muncie, Ind., getting revenge for Buffalo's 75-64 victory in Alumni Arena earlier in the year. Each team won in its home venue, so the Bulls' home court advantage could prove to be the difference.

In order to advance past ninth-seeded Ball State (10-17, 6-12 MAC), Buffalo will have to stop junior forward Skip Mills who is leading the Cardinals in scoring and rebounding at 17.9 and 5.3, respectively. In this season's two matches, the Bulls have managed to keep Mills from beating them with rebounds, as he combined for only six in the two contests. However, Mills' scoring touch has hurt Buffalo as he has combined for 47 points, 27 of which came at Alumni back on Jan. 18.

Freshman guard Maurice Acker poses another threat to the Bulls hopes for a third-consecutive trip to Cleveland. The 5-foot-8-inch guard is averaging 9.3 points per game to go along with 4.5 assists. Acker, like Mills, seemed to raise his game against Buffalo. He averaged 15 points and eight assists over the two games.

Doors to Alumni Arena will open for Monday night's game at 5:30 p.m. The first 2,000 students will receive free admission. The game will begin at 7 p.m.