UB entered Saturday with a chance to sweep the Big 4 but fell short against the St. Bonaventure Bonnies. The Bulls (4-3) lost 73-62 to the Bonnies (5-2) in front of a crowd of 6,212 at Alumni Arena.
The men’s basketball team is hoping to make the jump into the elite category of MAC teams. Predicted to win the MAC East, the team has already picked up some hard fought games. The Bulls continue their season Saturday at home when they take on St. Bonaventure. Like the Bulls (4-2, 0-0), the Bonnies (3-2, 0-0) run a three-guard attack. They will match up well against the Bulls and challenge them throughout during a high scoring, fast pace affair.
Former Buffalo Bills player and Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Thurman Thomas spoke at the Buffalo History Museum Thursday. He debuted “Icons: The Makers and Moments of Buffalo Sports,” named “The Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Gallery” due to a donation of $600,000 by the Wilson family. The gallery displays significant moments and athletes in Buffalo’s history.
Ikenna Smart suffered from the latter. The junior forward had soreness in his back that nagged him last season. Six feet 10 inches and 241 pounds is a lot of body to support with a bad back. Smart had surgery on his back during the offseason and is expected to return to the court for the Bulls by the end of December. He plans on being better than he was a season ago now that he’s healthy.
Cierra Dillard had to sit out the first basketball season of her UB career. Dillard was the top scorer at UMass Amherst averaging 15.5 points a game and having 60 steals in her 2015-16 season. She had to sit out the 2016-17 season due to NCAA transfer rules. Dillard made her return on Nov. 3 in an exhibition game against the Bloomsburg Huskies (1-1). She went 1-5 recording 2 points in the Bulls 64-32 win.
Former UB point guard Lamonte Bearden threw a curveball at the men’s basketball team last summer. Bearden, who led the team to their second Mid-American Conference title, announced he was transferring. The team has never truly established a point guard since.
The Bulls (2-0, 0-0 MAC) are only two games into the season and already look impressive on both sides of the ball. Much of that success should be attributed to head coach Felisha Legette-Jack and the coaching staff. The Spectrum met with Legette-Jack to talk about the upcoming season, the team’s previous success, her process on becoming the Bulls’ head coach and more.
Buffalo lost their leader in points and assists, Blake Hamilton. They retained two preseason all-MAC selections: junior guard CJ Massinburg and junior forward Nick Perkins. With only seven returning players, the team will be relying mostly on their new players to help them reach those projected results. The Spectrum spoke with Bulls Head Coach Nate Oats about his thoughts on the season.
Football (4-6, 2-4 MAC) UB football got things back on track when they beat the Bowling Green Falcons (2-8, 2-4 MAC) 38-28. Tyree Jackson had his second straight game with a career-high in passing yards. The redshirt sophomore quarterback finished with 406 yards and three touchdowns.
As the Bulls traveled to Cleveland for the 2017 men’s MAC tournament, the team received a text from the equipment manager. Anarchy ensued. The game was the next day and the practice jerseys were nowhere to be found. Wesley Scheier was to blame.
The Bulls (15-12, 8-8 MAC) did not have an easy end to their season. They were pitted against the Bowling Green Falcons (17-10, 13-3 MAC) and the Miami (OH) Redhawks (21-8, 13-3 MAC) this past weekend in their final home and regular season games.
UB basketball almost had its season opener spoiled Saturday night. In a real nail-biter, the Bulls were down for nine of the final 10 minutes.
UB men’s basketball was the MAC coaches preseason pick to win the Mid-American Conference East Division, but they have to replace three of their top five scorers from last season. The Bulls only have seven players still on their roster from last season; three of them were selected to all-MAC squads. This includes reigning MAC sixth man of the year, junior forward Nick Perkins, and the current MAC defensive player of the year, junior guard Dontay Caruthers.
SUNY officials remain tight-lipped about whether they’ll allow UB’s club rowers to use tens of thousands of dollars worth of equipment that formerly belonged to the Division I rowing team, which the university eliminated last year. UB is looking to resolve the situation soon, with the situation entering its eighth month and the club’s fall season already over.
The Buffalo Bulls (4-6, 2-4 MAC) came into Tuesday night’s game with a must win mentality after losing their previous four games, all in heartbreaking fashion.
Boom-bap, ’90s hip-hop music echoes through the flag room in the Student Union on Monday evenings. The piano playing has stopped and the room becomes a stage for Justin Ceniza, dressed in a backwards baseball cap, hoop earrings and a jumpsuit Run-DMC would envy. Ceniza, a senior psychology major, is the president of UB’s Breakdancing club. B-boys and B-girls around Buffalo have gathered at the club to express their art and love for dancing since the club was founded in 2006.
Two seasons ago, head coach Felisha Legette-Jack led the women’s basketball team to their first MAC championship. The Bulls feel they have the experience, skill and team culture to have another championship season now that the players from the 2015-2016 season are seniors.
The Bulls’ (14-9, 7-5 MAC) weekend was a road trip of highs and lows. The team defeated the Kent State Golden Flashes (5-18, 3-9 MAC) 3-0 on Friday in a strong defensive performance.
No team wants to see their first-string quarterback helped off the field. And it can only get worse when their backup suffers the same fate. In sports, however, injury can mean opportunity.
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