While most students enjoyed turkey and stuffing with family and friends over Thanksgiving break, the men's basketball team hit the road to start its longest stretch away from Alumni Arena this season.
The Bulls (3-2) split the two games. First, they clobbered Big Four rival Canisius (2-2), 81-64, and then they lost a 58-54 down-to-the-wire game to Indiana State (3-3).
Senior point guard Byron Mulkey continues to be the facilitator for the Bulls. His performance in both games virtually dictated the final outcomes.
Against Canisius, Mulkey scored a career-high 23 points in the win and was the catalyst for the Bulls on both sides of the ball. Defensively, the senior has pestered opposing offenses all season and currently leads the nation in steals with 4.6 per game.
In the game against Indiana State, Mulkey got into early foul trouble, and the Bulls seemed to lack the energy that has catapulted them to several big wins this season.
Bulls head coach Reggie Witherspoon relies heavily on Mulkey for many reasons.
"His leadership is important to us as well as his play," Witherspoon said. "The young guys have to learn from his leadership and learn from his competitiveness in practice. He's well-conditioned and can play a lot of minutes."
The overall development of the team is very important when looking at wins and losses at the end of the season. The youth movement on the Bulls this year makes things difficult at times, especially on the road.
"We're trying to arrive at a level where we can play every game the way we practice," Witherspoon said. "Our team is so young that if we get a few guys in foul trouble we become even more young. It's tough to survive that."
Next up for the Bulls is Army (4-2) who, according to Witherspoon, has no problem scoring the basketball. For the season, the Black Knights are shooting 44 percent from 3-point range, which raises some concerns for Witherspoon and his staff.
Closing out on shooters will be of the utmost importance in this contest as the Bulls have shown early on that they struggle when being forced to play from behind.
Junior shooting guard Zach Filzen has really stepped up this season and is playing hard on both ends of the floor. He is leading the team in minutes played per game (34), points per game (15), and 3-point field goals made (15).
The Bulls will need Filzen to have a big game offensively to help combat the shooting barrage they are sure to face on Wednesday night. In the two losses this season, Filzen has struggled from the field, making only 7-of-26 shots from the field.
One of the more puzzling parts of Buffalo's season thus far has been the poor play of junior forward Titus Robinson. The third year player has dealt with foul problems and occasionally seems to disappear at times on the floor this year for the Bulls.
Robinson is only playing 14 minutes per game and has been outplayed by freshman upstart Javon McCrea. In five games this season, all starts, Robinson is only averaging 2.4 points per game and 1.6 rebounds. These numbers are down from last season when he averaged 5.8 and 3.7, respectively. He also has the lowest field goal percentage on the team (29 percent).
In the Bulls' last game, Robinson did show some signs of life as he scored four points and grabbed two rebounds in 17 minutes. He looked more active on the floor and seemed to regain some of the confidence that has been so obviously absent.
The play of Robinson will be key for the Bulls as they battle Army because of his experience and ability. When right, he is able to make big plays and change the complexion of a game.
Witherspoon knows his team will have to be firing on all cylinders to take out Army.
"Over 70 percent of games in Division I college basketball are won by the home team," Witherspoon said. "A lot of that is being able to settle your mind down and [having the ability] to control momentum shifts. Both games we lost we were in foul trouble [which doesn't help]."
Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Wednesday at Christl Arena.
E-mail: sports@ubspectrum.com
Photo: Courtesy of UB Athletics
