Seven straight wins and counting.
Not to mention an 11-2 record since the Bulls' first meeting with Northern Illinois this season in January, when they stood at 5-9.
The win was not etched in stone until the late second half, unlike Buffalo's recent games, but a combination of clutch shooting and defense allowed the Buffalo Bulls (16-11, 11-7 MAC) to down the Akron Zips (13-14, 7-11 MAC) 68-60, Saturday in Ohio.
The explosive Derrick Tarver was limited to just 16 points as UB's Daniel Gilbert had him in a muzzle for most of the game. Tarver, the MAC's leading scorer, had put up 33 and 39 point performances in two of Akron's previous games.
"The guys that were guarding him were determined to make it very tough for him to catch the ball," said Bulls' head coach Reggie Witherspoon. "I think that he spent so much energy catching the basketball that it threw him off and it threw off Akron, not to be able to rely upon him to get 15 points in a half."
Akron chopped at Buffalo's ten-point lead coming out of halftime and got to the free throw line often in the late second half. UB tried to get the charge but each time Akron's driver would dribble inside and get the call.
Within the final two minutes the Zips had the deficit cut to two, but that was when the Bulls would answer.
Mario Jordan was in foul trouble, but made a basket to bring the lead back up to four.
Then it was Calvin Cage's turn.
In the final minute Cage picked up a rebound and was fouled as he raced down the court. He made both free throws to put UB's lead up to seven.
Akron then took three straight cracks at the 3-pointer, but another Cage rebound and a desperation foul allowed Buffalo's best free throw shooter to seal off the game.
"Down the stretch we had a pretty good poise," said Witherspoon. "I think that allowed us to see the open man, make the extra pass and have the defense try to catch up with us."
A very supportive group of UB fans made the trip to Akron and made the Bulls feel right at home.
"We had tremendous support on the road, I know people heard the crowd and wondered where we were playing," said Witherspoon. "But the Mighty Maniacs came out again. I'm sure we are going to get that on Monday night."
UB came into Saturday's game riding a hot streak that included big wins over Kent State and Miami, who are ranked two and three in the MAC respectively.
"They (Akron) rarely lose and at home nobody has been blowing them out here," said Witherspoon. "To expect us to blow them out that may have been the mindset that we carried into the game, but that caused us some problems early on."
To win a road game late in the season is helpful to a young team who will face a lot of adversity if they want to advance in the MAC tournament.
The close game was needed by UB who have won in just about every possible situation this season.
UB will host Northern Illinois at 7 p.m. tonight in Alumni Arena. An expected sellout crowd will cheer the red-hot Bulls in their first ever home MAC playoff game.
