Two straight losses is a trend. Four straight losses is a streak. Losing seven of your last eight is a big problem.
The men's basketball team lost to Western Michigan, 85-64, on Wednesday night turning the ball over 22 times and shooting only 39.1 percent from the field in the first half.
"We got beat off the dribble," said head coach Reggie Witherspoon. "We just got beat off the dribble and we talked about that at halftime, not letting them get into the paint off the dribble drive. And we didn't do a very good job of that and it caused us to be in situations where we were constantly rotating. We got behind them off the dribble and then they kicked to open players and when we didn't help out off the dribble drive they got open lay-ups. We did not do a very good job of that and our younger perimeter players really got taken to school on that."
Buffalo led only once in the game, 2-0, after freshman guard Andy Robinson made two free throws, but a three-pointer from Western Michigan gave the Broncos a permanent lead. The loss brings the Bulls' losing streak to five, its highest since Buffalo lost six straight in the 2003-04 season.
Early in the first half, the Bulls (9-12, 1-7 Mid-American Conference) again were unable to stop an opponent for long stretches and surrendered two different runs of 7-0 and 9-0 within the first four minutes of the half.
The Broncos (10-11, 5-3 MAC) extended their first-half lead to as much as 11 at the 3:13 mark of the first half, but Buffalo scored six straight points to close the gap to 32-27 at 1:25. The Broncos hit two free throws before a lay-up by freshman guard Calvin Betts brought the Bulls back to within five. A basket by Western Michigan gave the Broncos a 36-29 halftime lead.
The second half started the same as the first as Western Michigan's David Kool hit a three on the Broncos first possession. Following a basket by freshman forward Max Boudreau, a Western Michigan three-point play again raised the Broncos' lead to 11.
The Broncos went on to hit six more three-pointers throughout the rest of the second half. For the game, Western Michigan shot 55.4 percent, including an incredible 64.5 percent in the second half.
Derek Drews and Michael Redell each scored a game-high 17 points to lead Western Michigan in scoring. Drews scored all of his points in the second half, including finishing five of six from three-point-range.
For the first time all season, Buffalo went scoreless from the three-point range, finishing 0-11 from behind the line. Sophomore guard Eric Moore, who entered the game leading the MAC is three-pointers-made, shot 0-4 from three and finished with five points. Moore attempted only one three in the second half.
"It's the same guys that are hesitating that are rushing the shots," Witherspoon said. "And again as in most sports, it's mental and you get in those situations and it's going to hurt you in every aspect of your game. Offensively you're hesitating to make passes. You're hurrying on your jump shot. You're jittery on the free throw line and that caused us major problems. Those are some things we've been trying to work on and we didn't do a very good job."
Senior forward Yassin Idbihi led three Bulls in double-digits, but fouled out in 23 minutes with 13 points and seven rebounds. Senior forward Parnell Smith had 12 and freshman forward Max Boudreau scored 10 second-half points to reach his third straight double-digit scoring night.
Freshman guard Byron Mulkey saw his first action of the year and didn't turn the ball over in 17 minutes. Mulkey finished scoreless from the field but chipped in an assist and two rebounds.
"I think he gave us a good spot, making a very, very good effort," Witherspoon said. "He didn't back down. He gave us a good spark in the first half offensively. Defensively, I think he was right in line with the rest of our perimeter players and that is he was too tight on the dribble and got beat off the dribble but the guys who have been playing all year that happened to them as well. He didn't play with hesitation. He put some pressure on the defense to first get back and then there was less pressure on him. When we get in situation where we're not pushing the ball, they don't have to worry about getting back, so now they just get flat-out aggressive. Byron kept himself out of those situations."
With the loss, the Bulls are now one loss away from guaranteeing their second-straight non-winning season in conference play-something that has not happened since Turner Battle was a sophomore.
After playing all but one game on the road in the month of January, Buffalo will play four of its next five at home. The Bulls begin the stretch Saturday when Northern Illinois comes to Alumni Arena. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m.
