Sports - The Spectrum

Senior guard Antwain Johnson goes in for the dunk.

SPORTS

Men’s basketball defeats Kent State in double overtime

By ANTHONY DECICCO | Feb. 22, 2020

UB men’s basketball (18-9) defeated conference opponent Kent State (17-10) in double overtime. Despite the Golden Flashes boasting a strong 11-2 record at home prior to the contest, junior guard Jayvon Graves and senior guard Davonta Jordan lead the team to victory. Graves scored a career-high 33 points, shot 50% from the field and a tremendous 70% from 3-point range to bring his team to a huge victory. Jordan also shot 50% from the field while scoring 20 points. Both Graves and Jordan hit huge shots for UB throughout the fourth quarter and overtime periods.

Head football coach Lance Leipold talks strategy with the UB football team.

SPORTS

Lance Leipold agrees to contract extension through 2024

By JUSTIN WEISS | Feb. 21, 2020

Football head coach Lance Leipold signed a contract extension that could keep him in Buffalo through the 2024 season, UB announced Friday morning.

Freshman Guard Dyaisha Fair goes in for a shot during the game against the Akron, Zips Wednesday night in the Alumni Arena.

SPORTS

Women’s basketball drops sixth-straight game to Akron

By ROBERT SALISBURY | Feb. 21, 2020

UB women’s basketball (13-11) dropped its sixth-straight game to the Akron Zips (12-12) at Alumni Arena Wednesday, falling 69-63. The Bulls came into the game looking to end their losing streak, but walked off their home court with another loss.

Jeenathan Williams driving to the basket for a lay-up.

SPORTS

Homeward bound

By ROBERT SALISBURY | Feb. 19, 2020

Jeenathan Williams had 19 offers from Division-I programs after high school. He had the chance to go to Syracuse. He could’ve gone to Virginia. But when selecting a college, basketball wasn’t even Williams’ main concern. He wanted to come home.

The Murchie Family Football Center is home to coach’s offices, head coaches suit, and 9 team meeting rooms.

SPORTS

Murchie family makes largest donation ever to UB women’s basketball

By JUSTIN WEISS | Feb. 19, 2020

Tunney Murchie made the single largest donation in UB women’s basketball history on Tuesday. Murchie –– a 1975 graduate of UB and former player and assistant coach for the UB hockey team –– donated $100,000 to help fund the team’s summer tour to Spain.

SPORTS

Bulls defeat Ball State Cardinals in home-game rematch

By ALEX LENNEBERG and FINESS DICKSON | Feb. 19, 2020

The UB men’s basketball team (17-9, 8-5) defeated MAC rival Ball State (14-12, 7-6) 72-59 at Alumni Arena Tuesday. This marked the third-straight win for the Bulls, who are now in third place in the MAC East. UB got off to a slow start, shooting 1-14 in the first seven minutes. But the Bulls managed to tie the game just before halftime and went into the tunnel knotted up at 29.

Ronaldo Segu splits two Central Michigan defenders.

SPORTS

Jock of all trades

By JUSTIN WEISS | Feb. 16, 2020

By the time Ronaldo Segu reached ninth grade, he had a scholarship offer from Florida State University and an Instagram following that numbered in the tens of thousands. And by the time he graduated high school, Segu had earned 20 Division-I offers and became something of an online sensation — videos of his signature HESI move have been viewed millions of times.

The women’s basketball team congratulates an opponent at the end of a game.

SPORTS

Women’s basketball loses fifth-straight game

By RICHARD LOUIS and ROBERT SALISBURY | Feb. 16, 2020

Women’s basketball dropped its fifth-straight game Saturday afternoon in a 69-58 loss to Ball State (17-7). UB (13-10) had scoring troubles early on as the Cardinals held them to 11 of 33 from the field in the first half.

The women's basketball team gather in a team huddle before the start of a game.

SPORTS

Women’s basketball drops fourth straight to Western Michigan

By JAKE MAZURKIEWICZ | Feb. 13, 2020

UB women’s basketball (13-9) lost to MAC rival Western Michigan (12-10) 74-62 at University Arena Wednesday. The loss drops the Bulls to 4-7 in MAC play, further endangering their chances of making a postseason run.

Coach Whitesell takes aside Davonta Jordan for advice and encouragement after practice.

SPORTS

Quick hits: Transfers, errors and turnovers

By JUSTIN WEISS | Feb. 13, 2020

Jim Whitesell ‘perplexed’ by turnovers Over the past five games, men’s basketball is 2-3 and has dropped contests to Kent State and Eastern Michigan. During this period, the Bulls have turned the ball over 86 times. “To me, it’s perplexing,” head coach Jim Whitesell said.

Several former UB Bulls have gone on to play on the gridiron at a professional level.

SPORTS

Bulls in the pros — football

By JUSTIN WEISS | Feb. 13, 2020

UB has nine former football players in the professional ranks. For the first installation of a three-part series on former UB athletes, The Spectrum takes a look at the UB grads who excel on the gridiron:

UB's 2021 football schedule was released Friday morning. The Bulls will take on Nebraska and the reigning Sun Belt Conference champions, Coastal Carolina.

SPORTS

Football hauls in 131st-ranked recruiting class

By JUSTIN WEISS | Feb. 9, 2020

The numbers are in, and they aren’t pretty. The 2020 UB football recruiting class ranks 131st in the country, a 25-place drop from last year, according to 247Sports.

Junior guard Hanna Hall dribbles the ball at Saturday's game against Toledo.

SPORTS

Women’s basketball drops third-straight game

By ALEX LENNEBERG and EMILY BORJA | Feb. 9, 2020

UB women’s basketball (13-8) dropped its third-straight game to the Toledo Rockets (11-10) at Alumni Arena Saturday, falling 78-62. With the loss, the Bulls drop to third place in the MAC East.

SPORTS

Men’s basketball defeats Central Michigan 60-55

By ANTHONY DECICCO and ROBERT SALISBURY | Feb. 8, 2020

UB has had trouble hanging on to leads during its 2019-20 campaign. Despite the Bulls’ late-game struggles this season, they managed to hang on in a close one Friday. The men’s basketball team (15-9) got off to a great start at home where they defeated the Central Michigan Chippewas (13-9) 65-60.

Jayvon Graves, Antwain Johnson, Brock Bertram and Davonta Jordan having a discussion on the court (left to right).

SPORTS

‘Grow and mature’

By JUSTIN WEISS | Feb. 5, 2020

UB men’s basketball coach Jim Whitesell is stressing consistency as his team encroaches on the MAC Tournament in March. The 2020 Bulls have been characterized by a lack of consistency, stemming from inexperience and occasional lapses on defense.

Former Le Moyne softball head coach Riley Johnson joined the UB coaching staff last September.

SPORTS

‘We have high expectations’

By JUSTIN WEISS | Feb. 5, 2020

Last season, the Bulls were one of the worst fielding teams in the nation. To help solve the problem, head coach Mike Ruechel brought in Riley Johnson, a former Syracuse University softball player and head coach at Division II Le Moyne College.

Ronaldo Segu dribbles down the court during a previous men's basketball game this season.

SPORTS

Men’s basketball falls to Eastern Michigan 66-62

By FINESS DICKSON | Feb. 4, 2020

UB men’s basketball (14-9) lost to MAC rival Eastern Michigan (12-10) 66-62 at the EMU Convocation Center Tuesday.

The Bulls coming out of the tunnel for their game against Temple on 2/2/2020

SPORTS

Looking ahead: Football in the future

By JUSTIN WEISS | Feb. 2, 2020

Last September, UB football entered Beaver Stadium as a 31-point underdog to the then No. 15 Nittany Lions. The Bulls didn’t let that deter them: for 30 minutes, they were the better team. At the half, they led Penn State 10-7.

Junior center Brock Bertram goes for a layup.

SPORTS

Men's basketball falls to Bowling Green 78-77

By ANTHONY DECICCO | Feb. 1, 2020

UB has struggled in close games this season. Friday's contest against Bowling Green proved no different.

Senior guard Theresa Onwuka goes for a successful layup at Wednesday's game against Central Michigan.

SPORTS

Women’s basketball loses to Central Michigan in double overtime

By JUSTIN WEISS and LANCE WHITE | Jan. 30, 2020

The UB women’s basketball team (13-6) dropped a 98-93 heartbreaker to MAC rival Central Michigan (15-4) in double overtime at Alumni Arena Wednesday. The Bulls overcame a nine-point first-quarter deficit with a furious late-game rally. They forced double overtime but ultimately came up short to the reigning MAC regular-season champs.