Milwaukee never led by more than three points in the game, which occurred with 8:53 left in the first half, but a big three pointer from senior Nick Perkins began a quick 7-0 run for the Bulls as they took a 26-22 lead.
Another three pointer from Perkins opened up a 16-point second half lead for the Bulls with 14:38 left, but Milwaukee had one final run in them as the Panthers cut the advantage to just four with 8:45 remaining.
A layup from junior Davonta Jordan began a game-changing 17-4 run for Buffalo, which put the game out of reach. The run was capped off on a three from sophomore Jayvon Graves, leaving UB ahead 84-67 with 5:06 left.
A layup from freshman Jeenathan Williams gave the Bulls their largest lead of the game at 91-69, as he finished with nine points in the contest, including his first collegiate three pointer.
"I was happy with the fight of our guys today and I think they are really starting to gel," said head coach Nate Oats. "We gave them a few more runs than we would have liked, but I really liked the response of everyone on our team. I thought today was a total team victory."
Senior Jeremy Harris led UB with 21 points, going 8-of-14 from the floor, while adding four assists. Perkins added 20 points and nine rebounds, as he tied his career high with four three pointers.
Massinburg added 16 points, three rebounds, two assists, three blocks and two steals for UB, while senior Montell McRae had eight points and 10 rebounds. Jordan and Graves each had seven points.
The Bulls dished out 20 more assists, while blocking seven shots in the game. Milwaukee had assists on just five of their baskets for the game.
Buffalo will have one more game across the pond in Belfast on Saturday when it faces the winner of Stephen F. Austin and San Francisco in the championship game of the Goliath Bracket. That game will air nationally on CBS Sports Network beginning at 10:30am EST and 3:30 pm GMT.
(Courtesy of UB Athletics)