???On Sunday in Athens, Ohio, the men's basketball team overcame a late 10-point deficit and a winless record at Ohio's Convocation Center to remain tied for first place in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) East Division.
???Buffalo hopes to extinguish another winless record in a tough venue on Thursday.
???With the MAC Tournament on the horizon, the Bulls (18-9, 10-4 MAC) continue their pursuit for a first-round bye and a possible MAC Regulazr Season Championship when they head to Kent State (16-13, 8-6 MAC) to take on the Golden Flashes Thursday at the M.A.C. Center.
???The come-from-behind victory over Ohio lifted a lot of pressure off the team's shoulders. Freshman forward Mitchell Watt, who scored six points against Ohio, believed the team got back to playing the kind of basketball they were capable of against the Bobcats.
???"I think we got back to playing confident basketball with a lot of determination," Watt said. "I feel like a couple of games before [Ohio] we weren't playing with determination. We hit adversity against Ohio, but we never lost hope and never doubted ourselves."
???Watt and the Bulls reclaimed the dominance of the glass once possessed this season. The Bulls outrebounded Ohio by 14. Head coach Reggie Witherspoon thought it was the key Sunday.
???"We really worked hard and got back to rebounding... it helped a great deal," he said. "You don't get rebounds by just being tall. You got to do it with hard work and determination, and we got back to doing that."
???The team saw renewed confidence from junior forward Calvin Betts and senior guard Andy Robinson on Sunday. After missing in action during the losing streak, the two leaders combined for 21 points.
???Buffalo missed having consistent scoring options during the losing streak. Receiving production from Betts and Robinson was huge on Sunday and will continue to be vital for the Bulls.
???"We basically let them know that we really needed them," Witherspoon said. "It wasn't like they came out and made every shot they took, they played really hard. They made mistakes but they forced our opponent into mistakes."
???The win keeps Buffalo tied for first with Bowling Green on top of the MAC East. Bowling Green holds the tiebreaker over Buffalo after sweeping the Bulls earlier this season.
???Games against Kent State and Miami (OH) on Sunday will determine whether the Bulls will snag a first-round bye. The top four teams in the MAC automatically advance to the quarterfinals.
???"We can't afford to let the rest of our season go down the drain, we've worked too hard," Watt said. We're really striving for that first-round bye... One win off a four-game losing streak isn't enough for us. In these next two games we want to finish the season hard."
???The quest for a MAC quarterfinal bid starts with the Golden Flashes. At Alumni Arena in January, the Bulls rode a strong defensive effort to knock off Kent State, 64-53.
???But a different Kent State team will enter the Thursday contest. Since their loss to the Bulls, Kent State is 8-3. Like Buffalo, the Golden Flashes are vying for a first-round bye.
???Guard Al Fisher will lead Kent State's effort for a home win. Last year's MAC Player of the Year is averaging 15 points a game. He led Kent State with 26 points in their first matchup with the Bulls.
???To win, Buffalo will have to reverse a lackluster trend against Kent State. The Golden Flashes come into the contest with an all-time record of 21-4 against Buffalo. This includes an undefeated record against the Bulls at the M.A.C. Center.
???Coming off his first win at the Convocation Center, Witherspoon would like to grab his first win at Kent State while continuing Buffalo's success.
???"Those places [the M.A.C. Center and Convocation Center] haven't just provided us with problems, they've provided the entire conference with problems," he said. "Kent State has been beating almost everyone at home. That just means the challenge is bigger and one we're looking forward to."
???Tip off is at 7 p.m.
Photo: Breadchastick / Wikimedia Commons
