 BUFFALO 80, YOUNGSTOWN STATE 72
Buffalo improved to 6-2 on the season by dominating the play inside. The Bulls outscored the Penguins, 42-18, in the paint and outrebounded Youngstown State, 45-34. McCrea seemingly scored at will, shooting 14-of-17 from the field.
“I think our guys did a really nice job of recognizing some openings against their zone and getting it inside against their man-to-man and attacking them,” head coach Reggie Witherspoon said.
As dominant as the Bulls were on the inside, Youngstown State was equally lethal from long range. The Penguins made 14-of-35 three-point attempts. They made eight threes in the first half, including one in the closing seconds, to take a 39-38 lead at the break.
A Titus Robinson layup with 16:34 left gave the Bulls the lead for good, 46-45. However, UB’s lead would grow no larger than 10 as Youngstown State’s long-range shooting kept the Penguins in the game.
Leading, 62-61, Tony Watson knocked down a three-pointer to extend the Bulls’ lead to four. It was a part of a 9-2 UB scoring run and a McCrea layup put the Bulls ahead, 69-61, with 5:10 remaining.
Another Watson three-pointer gave Buffalo a 72-64 lead with 3:21 left. On UB’s next possession, Watt soared over everyone to dunk home a missed shot and put the Bulls ahead, 74-64, and seal the win for Buffalo.
Zach Filzen was guarded tightly all night, but still managed to score 11 points, including shooting 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. Watson finished with eight points and Robinson had six.
Watt had four blocked shots to bring his career total to 150 – moving him into second place on the school’s career block list.
Buffalo will have some time off for final exams before playing at Brigham Young on Dec. 20.
Courtesy of Buffalo Athletics |
