With March Madness approaching, this is the time to get hot in college basketball.
The Mid-American Conference playoffs begin the first week of March, and the Bulls are peeking at the perfect time. This is the fourth victory in the last six games for the Bulls.
Saturday afternoon, the women's basketball team defeated the Akron Zips, 65-59. The Bulls never trailed throughout the game. With their 10th win of the season, the Bulls have already equaled the amount of wins they had all of last season.
Defense set the tone for the Bulls in the first half. Buffalo (10-17, 5-10 Mid-American Conference) led 9-8 early before going on a 16-5 run to extend that lead to 25-13 with just under five minutes remaining in the half.
Akron (10-17, 3-12 MAC) finished the half down 29-18 due to its porous shooting. The Zips made just six of their 24 field goal attempts in the first half and made only two of 12 three-point shots. In the game, Akron shot only 34 percent from the field.
Quietly, the Zips would battle back in the second half, slowly chipping away at the Bulls lead. With just under seven minutes remaining Akron made it a one-possession game at 49-47. The Zips continued to stay close, once again closing the gap to two points with 3:29 remaining. However, a quick 6-0 run by the Bulls made the score 55-47, but still could not bury the feisty Zips.
With 44 seconds remaining in the game, Akron guard Sarah Tokodi converted a three point play to bring the Zips again to within two, 57-55. Yet, Buffalo hit its free throws down the stretch, connecting on 6-7 in the last 35 seconds en-route to the six-point victory.
"You can see this team becoming more and more confident in their ability to win a game," said head coach Linda Hill-MacDonald. "There were points in the season where we looked like a deer in the headlights when teams would make a run at us and I'm not seeing that anymore. They understand what needs to be done and they have been doing a much better job."
Buffalo was led by balanced scoring, with three players finishing in double figures and two more within just two points.
"I love that well rounded and balanced scoring," Hill-MacDonald said. "It just speaks to the team effort on the floor and their willingness to share the ball and find the open teammate."
Junior forward Heather Turner led the Bulls with 15 points, 10 of which came in the first half, and six rebounds.
"She had a great game," Hill-MacDonald said. "She put pressure on their defense to defend differently than I thought they planned. She certainly had a great start for us."
Junior guard Stephanie Bennett played all 40 minutes of the game, scoring 10 points to go along with five rebounds. Senior forward Belinda Gibb filled the stat columns, scoring eight points, grabbing four rebounds and dishing out a team high six assists.
Akron utilized big performances from Niki McCoy and Sarah Tokodi, who combined for 43 of the Zips' 59 points. McCoy carried her team, finishing with 27 points. McCoy shot 14-14 from the free throw line. Akron's starting unit accounted for all the teams scoring as the Zips bench was outscored by Buffalo, 13-0.
"Nikki McCoy had an incredible game," Hill-MacDonald said. "We had a difficult time finding an answer for her tonight."
Buffalo excelled from everywhere on the court, including going 15-19 from the free throw line and shooting 46 percent from the field and 40 percent from three point range. Akron stayed close throughout the second half, making up for their poor shooting from the field by going a perfect 20-20 from the free throw line.
"Certainly Akron stayed in the game on the foul line," Hill-MacDonald said. "100 percent from the foul line. Have to give them credit, they got into our bodies."
The Bulls still play one more game on the road against Kent State on Wednesday before the MAC Tournament begins. Buffalo previously fell by just three points when it met the Golden Flashes on Jan. 17 in Buffalo.
"I think this time of the season anything can happen," Hill-MacDonald said. "We have improved since the last time we played Kent. We did play them close. We'll try to plan a strategy that will get them a little off balance."
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
