Even though Wednesday was Senior Night at Alumni Arena, it was the play of a junior that helped the men's basketball team escape with a win.
The Bulls (17-11, 8-7 Mid-American Conference) snapped their four-game conference-losing streak with a 59-49 win against Miami (Ohio) (15-15, 10-5 MAC). Both teams struggled shooting in the game, but the Bulls were able to play better defense down the stretch to dispose of the RedHawks.
Junior forward Mitchell Watt added more content to his season-long highlight reel over the course of the game. He threw down a thunderous put-back dunk early in the first half to bring the Buffalo crowd to its feet. He also helped bring the Bulls back with his outside shooting after they trailed 20-8 in what was looking like a possible blowout.
Watt continued to be a force throughout the game. His 12 points, 10 rebounds, four blocks, and two steals proved to be one of the deciding factors of the contest.
Although Watt was modest about his stats, he explained how his shot selections were motivated by players giving him open looks in recent games.
"I'm feeling good, but it was a great team win," Watt said. "Last game against Akron…they left [the forwards] wide open at the top of the key and I took offense to that. So this game, if [the RedHawks] laid off, I wanted them to pay for it."
The Bulls played solid defensively, as well. Buffalo started the game in man defense but quickly turned to a 2-3 zone, despite being continuously burned from beyond the arc in the opening minutes of the game. The change succeeded in shutting down the RedHawks' offense. Miami (Ohio) couldn't get anything going and only shot 19-of-57 from the field in the game.
Miami (Ohio) head coach Charlie Coles believed the Bulls' zone defense was the main reason for his team's loss.
"Buffalo surprised me with their defense," Coles said. "They went to zone and it took us away from what we were trying to do. We don't have a good zone team because we don't have the two inside guys to work the high-low with… So [it was a] key move by [Bulls head coach Reggie Witherspoon] for going zone."
Watt, along with freshman forward Javon McCrea, led the defensive effort against Miami's super-forward Julian Mavunga. The tandem of Watt and McCrea held the RedHawks' junior to only six points on 3-of-14 shooting. His absence offensively seemed to really affect Miami (Ohio) as the game progressed.
The Bulls also exploited Miami's weakness on the boards. They outrebounded the RedHawks 48-33, while outscoring them 16-8 on second-chance points.
Despite the defensive efforts and its dominance on the glass, Buffalo still found itself struggling offensively in the second half. Buffalo shot an abysmal 6-of-24 after intermission and saw some of its top performers struggle throughout the contest. Junior guard Zach Filzen, who totaled 12 points, shot just 33 percent from the field.
Senior guard Byron Mulkey may have allowed the excitement of the night to get to him and it showed in his play. His early foul trouble forced him to play more conservatively throughout the game. He turned the ball over three times and didn't record a single assist.
The points from the bench partially made up for Mulkey's ineffectiveness. Buffalo got a substantial 18 points from its non-starters, while Miami (Ohio) only received four. Witherspoon believed that such output from the bench will prove to be crucial in the long run.
"I don't know if we've been able to win [without Mulkey's high output] in the past," Witherspoon said. "But we were able to do it today, and it helps the development of all our guys."
Buffalo is now preparing to close out its regular season in a very hostile Bowling Green environment on Saturday afternoon. The Falcons (12-18, 7-8 MAC) will play their final regular season game at Anderson Arena against the Bulls. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m.
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