Men's Basketball (1-7, 0-0 MAC) lost a matchup against the St. Bonaventure Bonnies (5-2, 0-0 A-10) 80-65, at Alumni Arena on Saturday afternoon. The Bulls’ only victory so far this season came against the Division-II Roberts Wesleyan Redhawks (2-4, 1-0 ECC) on Nov. 15. The Bulls are off to their worst start since they went D-I in 1998.
UB had just 11 assists and shot 2-17 (11.8%) from the three, compared to St. Bonaventure’s 20 assists and 10-24 (41.7%) three point percentage, in the loss Saturday. The Bulls recorded 14 turnovers compared to the Bonnies’ 12. The Bulls never had the lead, and were down by 20 points at one point.
Bonnies junior forward Chad Venning started dismantling the Bull’s defense early, as he finished as the game’s top scorer with 23 points. 10 minutes into the first half the Bulls were already down by 12 points. Senior forward Sy Chatman finished the game as the Bulls’ leading scorer with 20 points, with only four in the first half. UB was down 39-21 at the break.
In the second half, UB tried to claw back into the game, but victory remained out of reach. A highlight reel posterizing dunk by Chatman was their highlight of the game, with two minutes left to play. Senior forward Jonnivius Smith finished with 14 points, second most on the team. UB shot 22-58 (37.9%) on field goals. St. Bonaventure went 28-58 (48.3%) on field goals.
The Bulls head to Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana to play the Butler Bulldogs (6-2, 0-0 BEC) on Tuesday, Dec. 5 at 8:30 p.m. The game can be streamed live on ESPN+.
The sports desk can be reached at sports@ubspectrum.com
