After losing to Western Michigan on Wednesday night, Buffalo was in desperate need of a victory Saturday night. The Bulls were looking for just their second home victory since the beginning of conference play and was trying to stay in striking distance of a three-way tie for first place in the Mid-American Conference East Division.
Standing in the Bulls way was Central Michigan, owners of both the worst overall record and worst conference record in the MAC. The game started off the Bulls way, as Buffalo (12-12, 5-6 MAC) jumped out to an early 8-0 lead. However, the Chippewas (6-18, 2-10 MAC) answered back with an 11-2 run.
The first half continued as a back-and-forth affair that featured five ties and six lead changes. Buffalo did not make a three-pointer the entire first half, and turned the ball over 13 times. Central Michigan shot 35 percent from the floor, but the Bulls' miscues allowed the Chippewas to go into halftime with the score tied at 30.
The second half was dominated by Central Michigan. The game was tied 45-45 with just under 13 minutes left in the game, and the Chippewas began an assault on the basket. They were able to put the game away with a 26-5 run. The Chippewas used this surge to take a game tied at halftime and turn it an 80-57 victory.
"I'm embarrassed by the lackluster performance by the Buffalo Bulls today. That is not the team that I'm accustomed to seeing," said head coach Linda Hill-MacDonald. "I feel like I went into the locker room and pulled out an intramural team in the second half, and it's embarrassing...They were prepared, there is absolutely no excuse for the lack of defensive effort."
Central Michigan made eight three-pointers in the second half, shooting 66 percent from behind the arc. The Bulls had no answer for this hot-shooting, as they were out-hustled to every loose ball during the stretch, and were out rebounded 22-13 in the second half. Another aspect contributing to Buffalo's second half meltdown were their 24 turnovers.
Leading the way in Central Michigan's three-point barrage was Kendra Holman who made four of six of her shots from behind the arc, scoring 13 points in all. Candace Wilson was three of seven from three-point land, scoring 19 points. Angel Chan also chipped in three tr?(c)s scoring 15 points in the whole game. Britni Houghton made both of her long-distance shots to contribute 16 points in the Chippewa victory. In total, Central Michigan made 52 percent of its threes for the game, making 13 of 25 in the contest.
For Buffalo it was a different story. The Bulls only made two of their 13 three-point shots, both coming from senior guard Stephanie Bennett. Buffalo was also unable to get to the free-throw line, only attempting seven shots from the charity stripe. The Bulls made only three of its seven shots at the free-throw line, while Central Michigan was an efficient 13-18.
"We didn't play defense, we missed lay-ups, we rushed shots...there was no flow to our offense at all. We started taking early shots," Hill-MacDonald said. "There was nine minutes left on the clock and we were putting one shot up after another after another without settling our offense, allowing us to get into position to at least rebound. It was a one-and-done opportunity. One shot, they get the rebound; they're going down and nailing threes."
One bright spot for Buffalo was freshman forward Jessica Fortman. Despite five turnovers, Fortman scored a team-high 19 points, and tied for the team lead with nine rebounds. Senior forward Heather Turner also had nine boards and added 12 points in the losing effort. The only other Bull in double figures was Bennett, who had 12 points. Buffalo's other two starters, sophomore guard Ashley Zuber and junior guard Jamie Schiebner combined to shoot only 4 of 16 from the field, totaling eight points.
With only five games left before the conference tournament, Hill-MacDonald believes that her team needs to start helping themselves, as the coaching staff can only do so much.
"They have to turn themselves around. We can prepare them. They have to bring the effort. They have to bring the focus...They have to understand what's on the line right now, how important the next five games are, starting with Miami on Wednesday," Hill-MacDonald said. "Every game becomes very, very critical at this point. They put themselves in that position. I can't do it, they have to do it. All I can do is prepare them."
Buffalo will look to start turning its season around on Wednesday when it plays Miami (Ohio) at Alumni Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
