The past few weeks have been a roller coaster ride for Buffalo basketball fans.
After recovering from Saturday's Mid-American Conference Championship loss to Akron, hopes of postseason success quickly diminished thanks to a strong performance by Wichita State.
On Wednesday night, Buffalo (21-12) tipped off with aspirations to advance to the quarterfinals of the College Basketball Invitational, but Wichita State's (17-16) hot shooting and airtight defense led the Bulls to an 84-73 loss.
After finishing the regular season at home 13-3, the Shockers came on the court comfortable and poised.
Wichita State started off the game well by taking advantage of Buffalo's careless ball handling. The Shockers' full-court press caught the Bulls off guard and forced three turnovers in the first four minutes. By halftime, Buffalo had coughed the ball up nine times.
In addition to Buffalo's offensive struggles, their defense was lackluster and flat-footed. Wichita State made them pay with hot perimeter shooting.
As a team, the Shockers knocked down 5-for-11 3-pointers in the first half. Buffalo wasn't able to close out on the shooters and gave up too many uncontested shots.
"We didn't have any energy tonight," said Buffalo head coach Reggie Witherspoon. "We were a step late on everything. The way they shot it, you couldn't be a step late."
After the early surge, the closest that the Bulls came to tying the Shockers was by seven points when they trailed 21-14 with 11:22 left in the first half. Wichita State controlled the rest of the half and led 45-29 at the break.
Buffalo came out of the locker room aggressive and looked as though they were going to make a push for the lead. The Shockers, however, had other plans and squashed Buffalo's postseason hopes with timely runs that helped maintain their comfortable lead throughout the game.
Each of Wichita State's five starters finished in double figures. The team combined for a season-high 22 assists.
Standouts for the Shockers included senior forward Ramon Clemente and junior guard Clevin Hannah, who lead the way with 14 points each. Hannah added eight dimes in the win.
Shockers head coach Gregg Marshall believed that the crowds' intensity played a large role in his team's success.
"What did we end up with tonight - 6,647?" Marshall said. "It sounded more like 10 [thousand] to me. The people that were here made it sound like a sellout. It was a great atmosphere."
The atmosphere at Charles Koch Arena amazed Witherspoon.
"That building may be the loudest building I have ever been in," Witherspoon said. "We didn't respond very well to it."
For the Bulls, the high points of the night were from junior guard Rodney Pierce and senior guard Greg Gamble. Pierce scored 17 points while Gamble added six assists.
The Shockers will face Stanford on Monday at home, while Buffalo's surprise season ends.
Buffalo's 21 wins were the second-most in school history. The Bulls will have 12 players returning to the court next season.
