Following last year’s men’s soccer trip to England, the women’s squad now has its opportunity to travel overseas. The Bulls will travel to three cities – Barcelona, Valencia and Madrid – during their seven-day trip to Spain during UB’s upcoming spring break.
The weekly recap of what's happened in UB Athletics.
The Bulls (16-13, 9-7 Mid-American Conference) fell to Ohio (19-9, 10-6 MAC) 103-96 in overtime on Saturday afternoon in Athens, Ohio. The Bobcats have now swept the season series against the Bulls and the loss pushes Buffalo down to third place in the MAC East with two games remaining in the regular season.
For the second time this season, the Bulls (15-12, 7-9 MAC) defeated Ohio (22-5, 14-2 MAC), this time besting the Bobcats 70-58 in Athens, Ohio on Saturday afternoon.
The Bulls (14-12, 6-9 MAC) take on Ohio at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio Saturday hoping for a repeat of their 51-43 upset of the Bobcats on Feb. 3. After the Bulls play Ohio, it won’t get an easier. They face the second-best team in the MAC East, Akron (14-12, 8-7 MAC) on Wednesday. The Zips defeated Buffalo 69-61 in Alumni Arena on Jan. 16.
UB Athletics administrators, football players and coaches were present at a private service Thursday for sophomore defensive end Solomon Jackson, who’s been hospitalized since a medical emergency during a conditioning practice on Monday.
The Bulls (14-12, 6-9 Mid-American Conference) defeated Bowling Green (9-15, 5-10 MAC) 55-52 on a last-second block by Oursler, a native of Grans Island. The Bulls held a special promotion Wednesday – anyone from Grand Island could purchase a ticket for $5.
She watched on the sideline as the Bulls lost to eventual conference champions, Ohio, in the Mid-American Conference Quarterfinals in Cleveland last season. She watched at home when West Virginia defeated Buffalo in the program’s first-ever Women’s National Invitation Tournament appearance. She even had to sit out for the first 10 games of this season. And if she could have played in any of those games, there may have been a different outcome. “I think she continues to get better,” said head coach Felisha Legette-Jack. “She has a major presence about herself, she just has to slow her down in her head. Once we get her to slow it down in her head, you’re going to see a 20-10 kid.”
The Bulls (16-12, 9-6 Mid-American Conference) exploded for 51 points in the second half to knock off conference-rival Kent State (18-10, 9-6 MAC) 87-70 Tuesday night at Alumni Arena.
The maturation of “CJ Buckets” – the imposed nickname True Blue chants when Massinburg hits a pair of free throws or just when the student fans feel like doing it – has been unparalleled by any other freshman on the Bulls (16-12, 9-6 Mid-American Conference) this season. Within a year, Massinburg went from an unknown, unsigned high school senior, to the semi-occasional starting point guard of a Division-I basketball team gearing up for its conference tournament.
UB football player Solomon Jackson has been hospitalized at Buffalo General Medical Center following a medical emergency during a Bulls conditioning session Monday morning. Medical personnel at the hospital told The Spectrum Monday night that Jackson was in critical condition. Jackson’s family declined comment.
The men’s squad went 1-1 this past week and ended its three-game losing streak after an 88-74 home victory over Bowling Green (13-14, 4-10 MAC). Earlier in the week, Buffalo lost on the road to top-seeded Akron (21-6, 10-4 MAC) 80-70 before heading back home to take the victory over the Falcons.
From fans heckling the St. John Fisher goaltender with chants of his name and making fun of his mother’s cooking, to even a fight between the two teams sprawling out on the ice, both teams battled in effort to move on to the National Collegiate Hockey Association Semifinals. But in the end it was Buffalo’s speed and puck control that was the reason for the team advancing to the NCHA Semifinals in Rochester, New York.
The Bulls (13-12, 5-9 Mid-American Conference) had a great third quarter as they scored 23 points and kept Miami Ohio’s (9-16, 3-11 MAC) offense in check with a full court press en route to a 58-39 victory at Alumni Arena Saturday afternoon. The victory moved the Bulls to third place in the MAC East, surpassing Bowling Green (9-14, 5-9 MAC).
The Bulls (15-12, 8-6 MAC) put up 50 second-half points en route to an 88-74 victory over Bowling Green (13-14, 4-10 MAC) in front of an announced crowd of 3,397 at Alumni Arena Saturday afternoon. Hamilton scored 16 of his career-high 24 points in the second half as the Bulls snapped their three-game losing streak.
The Bulls are preparing to open the 2016 season with a three-game tournament this weekend in Davidson, North Carolina.
Buffalo, which went just 13-37 in Peel’s second season last year after an impressive and unexpected conference championship game appearance in 2014, is going to be relying on freshman heavily this season. Eight of the team’s 21 players are freshmen.
Buffalo hosts Bowling Green (13-13, 4-9 MAC) Saturday and Kent State (17-9, 8-5 MAC) Tuesday in Alumni Arena. Oats remains hopeful that his team can get right back on track.
The Bulls (12-12, 4-9 Mid-American Conference) continued their downward slide with a 70-55 loss to Eastern Michigan (16-8, 7-6 MAC) that caused Legette-Jack to apologize to Buffalo’s fans and athletic director.
The Bulls (12-12, 4-9 MAC) gave up 70 points for the second time in three games and are slowly sinking to the bottom of the conference. After automatically advancing to Cleveland for the MAC Tournament the past two seasons, Buffalo will likely have to play a first round campus game.
Solutions by The State News
