Sunday’s Men’s Basketball Results
Buffalo 83, UMBC 79
South Dakota State 68, Ball State 64
Recap courtesy of Buffalo Athletic Communications
Buffalo 83, UMBC 79
Box Score
BALTIMORE, Md. – The University at Buffalo men's basketball team (9-1, 0-0 MAC) picked up a thrilling road victory against the UMBC Retrievers (6-4, 0-0 America East) on Tuesday night, 83-79. A Ryan Sabol three-pointer with 15.2 seconds to go helped the Bulls end the game on an 11-0 run over the final two minutes of game play.
Tim Oboh had a career-high as he scored 19 points with four rebounds and a steal. He finished 8-for-10 from the floor. Daniel Freitag scored 17 points with half a dozen rebounds. Ezra McKenna buried a season-high 13 points including a team-high trio of three-pointers. Ryan Sabol tallied 11 points including the go-ahead three-pointer to make it 81-79.
In consecutive games, the Bulls shot over 54% as they finished 30-of-55 from the floor. The Retrievers were also successful from the floor as they were 31-for-59, including nine three-pointers. Buffalo buried 16 of their 18 free throws as UMBC was a perfect 8-for-8.
After allowing the Retrievers to score the first basket of the game, the Bulls had their first 11-0 run of the game to take an 11-2 lead. The Bulls started the game 6-of-8 from the floor in their run. Buffalo maintained the lead for over 14 minutes of the first half, but the momentum shifted in the final five minutes prior to the half. UMBC trailed, 32-26, but tied the game at 34 off a three. The Retrievers got their first lead since their first basket as they outscored the Bulls by 10 in the final five minutes. The Bulls went to the locker room trailing, 43-39. Both squads were 16-for-28 from the floor.
The Retrievers led for nearly the entire second half as their lead reached nine points at the 11:38 mark, 60-51. The Bulls tried to chip away, but UMBC pushed the lead back to nine two more times headed in to under eight media timeout. A Mikhail Pocknett fastbreak layup cut the deficit to 65-64 with 6:11 remaining, but the Retrievers answered right back with a three-pointer to hold their lead at four points. Keeping it at a three-possession game, the Retrievers scored, what would be, their final basket with 2:05 to go to make it 79-72.
Freitag started Buffalo's dramatic run with a pair of free throws. The ensuing possession, the Retrievers missed a layup, but it was déjà vu for Freitag as he found himself back at the free throw line as the Bulls were in the double bonus. He made both his free throws as the Bulls trailed by three, 79-76. With momentum swaying toward the Bulls, Pocknett made a charging layup to make it a one-point game with 34 seconds remaining. On the inbound, UMBC threw it away as Angelo Brizzi came away with the steal. He put up a layup that touched every part of the rim before falling off. Derrick Talton Jr. ripped the rebound away from UMBC as he kicked it out to Sabol as he nailed the go-ahead three to put the Bulls in front, 81-79. Pocknett put the game on ice with a pair of free throws as the Bulls won, 83-79.
The Bulls are back in action on Sunday at 1 p.m. when they play on the road at East Carolina.
